What is Life Without Horrors?
by thelovelygifs
Summary: Cassandra is the daughter of the current SAMCRO president. What happens when she comes back home? and as you can tell, this is an AU story
1. Welcome Running Home

**A/N: The chapter title is supposed to be Wel/come (Running) Home**

**Oh, and this is my first fanfiction written for sons of anarchy. So please bear with me. Also this has not been beta'd. I have run it through the spell/grammar check of the program I have on my computer. **

**This is about Cassandra Morrow, she's the daughter of Clay Morrow, and this is the first time she's in Charming since she and her mother moved away when she was one year old.**

**And I'd love reviews and hear what you all think, also to get preview snippets and other random tidbits of information check out my tumblr thelovelygifs. Check the tag wilwh.**

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I was in the kitchen to get me a bottle of water before I got ready to go to bed. I was wearing a pair of jeans and a green blouse like t-shirt, and my strawberry blonde hair was only going down to my shoulders, but it was in curls. However, when I entered the kitchen I wasn't alone. He was there. The man who owned the record label that had been trying to recruit me, but that wasn't all. I'd seen this man lurking around my house, and at the school where I was a teacher. I had no idea of how he'd gotten into my house, because I didn't have a spare key, except for the one I had in a drawer in the kitchen, and it was unnerving. He was making himself comfortable, pouring himself a glass of whiskey. I did not like it. It wasn't just creeping me out, it was making me furious.

"Get out! This is my house!" I said to him loudly, almost crossing over to screaming. He shouldn't be in my house. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a plaid shirt. And his black hair was starting to turn grey in places. While I was almost screaming at him, he took a swig of the whiskey. This wasn't the first time I saw him. I didn't like it that he'd gotten into my house.

"Don't worry Cassandra. I'm not going to hurt you." he said in a soothing voice, trying to calm me down. He still held the glass in his hand, and moving it around a bit. I just looked up at his face. His blue eyes met my hazel ones. I was more mad than scared of him as of this moment.

"Max will hurt you," I literally screamed at him. Max was my Siberian Husky. I hadn't seen him yet since I got home, but I knew he'd come to my rescue. He always did.

"Oh, you mean that Siberian Husky. Don't count on it," he said as he put the glass down. I just glared at him for a moment.

"What did you do to my dog you asshole?" I screamed at him. That dog was all I had here that I loved. I had no family, I barely had any friends, beside my co-workers, and they didn't count.

"Stop yelling at me, I'm not going to hurt you." he yelled as he put his hands on my shoulders. He was obviously getting frustrated with me. I tried to shake it off, but he had a firm grip on my shoulders. He didn't answer my question about my dog, and it made me fear the worst. His outburst took me by surprise and stunned me into silence.

"Don't worry, I would never hurt you Cassandra. You're too precious." he said and I just glared at him. I had no idea what he was capable of, but I had an idea since Max still hadn't showed up. He would always show up when I was screaming. However, at that moment I just remained quiet. I didn't want to get hurt, and I didn't believe him when he said he wouldn't hurt me. He had tried before.

"Why don't we go upstairs?" I asked after coming back to my full senses, trying to distract him enough to get him to let go of me, so I could scurry up the stairs and to the telephone in my bedroom. Most of the time I loved my big house, but today was one of those days when I absolutely hated it. I was lucky, he nodded and let me go. I hurried up the stairs and into my bedroom, I locked the double doors that led into the room and then went into the bathroom and turned the water on. I then grabbed the phone and dialed 911.

"911, what's your emergency?" it was a woman's voice I heard in the receiver of the phone.

"I need your help, there's a murderer in my house." I said shaking from fear, I hadn't been scared of him at first, however when I saw the trail of blood going from the bottom of the stair toward the living room. That was when I realized that Max most likely was dead. My dog, my precious dog, and that were when the fear struck me. The man in my kitchen was capable of killing.

"The nearest police car will be there in fifteen minutes," she said and I just nodded. I hung up the phone and waited. It felt like an eternity. While I waited, I did my best to push the dresser to block the door. It wasn't easy. Just as I had managed to get it to block both of the doors, I could hear him trying to push it open. The dresser moved very little but it still moved. So I backed away from the door and dresser and then I heard how he started to pound on it. He was trying to get in. Hoping it'd keep him out until the police came. After a few minutes had passed, I heard the sirens of the police car. I couldn't tell if there was more than one. Not before long, I heard them break down the front door. That was when the pounding on my bedroom door stopped. That was all I noticed before I hear a softer knocking, and a woman's voice.

"Are you okay, miss?" I heard the voice through the door. It was a woman. I walked over to the dresser and pushed it so I could open one of the two doors.

"Yes." I said as I walked out through the door, meeting the police officer. I felt safe now that the police was here. It meant he wasn't. Or rather, it meant he either was most likely in the police car or had run off. I hoped that he was in the police car, so that I wouldn't have to worry about it anymore.

"We found a huge amount of blood in the living room, and a trail that lead out into the backyard. There we found a Siberian Husky," the police officer said as we were walking down the stairs. That was when I started to cry. My dog, he was dead. A dog I'd had for almost eight years.

"That would be Max…" I said and trailed off as the tears flooded my eyes. They were streaming down my face and I couldn't do anything to stop them. I loved that dog. He was a part of my family. The only family I had here in Boston. I didn't feel safe any more, well I hadn't felt particularly safe for the past two years. That was why I had a licensed gun. But tonight I hadn't been able to get to it. I kept the ammunition for it in my bedroom, but I kept the gun in a drawer in the living room. I needed to get away, I couldn't stay here any more. Not after he'd broken in and killed my dog, I knew this. And I knew exactly where to go. Back home, to my family. I followed the two cops out and watched as they drove off, I saw him in the backseat of the police car. He mouthed "You're next." to me. It made me even more determined to leave.

When the police car had driven off, I ran back up the stairs and into my bedroom. I was not going to waste any time in getting away. If I could get away fast enough, it'd be harder for him to follow me. I still had moving boxes lying around in the closet. I grabbed several of them and started to fill them with shoes, clothes and other things I would need. I also packed some memorabilia that I had. Photos and such. When I'd packed it all down, I packed my bag with money and my laptop, my gun and the ammunition and a few other items. I knew I needed to be on the road soon. Just in case, they let him go. I couldn't go through it again. I wasn't safe any more. I needed safety. I put my cell phone in my pants jeans pocket.

I packed five boxes and my bag, I managed to get two of the boxes at once and loaded them into the bed of my red old truck. The one my dad gave me for my 16th birthday. I had to take the rest of the boxes one and one, so it took me about half an hour to pack all five boxes into the truck. When I had done so I climbed in to the car and started driving, even though it was late. I didn't care, I couldn't stay. Not with my dog dead. I had my phone with me. However, I knew I'd have to get another phone. But not until I knew where I was going first. I wasn't going straight to Charming that would make it too easy for him to follow me. I was planning to travel a bit here and there first.

I knew that I needed to give my family some kind of heads up before I showed up there. So that night I drove for four hours before stopping and taking in at a cheap motel. When I had a motel room, I just grabbed my boxes and put them on the floor, by the door. I brought the boxes in to the motel room because I didn't want to be robbed. I dropped my back on the bedside table. After that I just crawled into bed and fell asleep. I didn't even bother to change into my pajamas.

When I woke up only five hours had passed since I'd gotten to the motel. I didn't care. I still got up. I knew I wouldn't be able to fall back asleep once I'd woken up. I turned over, lay on my back, and fished my phone up from my pocket.. It was six am. I didn't have the cell phone number of my dad's, however I did have his wife's cell phone number memorized. I had memorized her number after my mum had died. I liked having someone to talk to, someone that could understand me. I dialed it and waited for someone to pick up. While I waited I sat up on the bed and stared at the wall opposite of the bed.

"Jesus Christ," was the answer I got when the phone was answered after seven signals. I hadn't hung up, because I had to let them know. I recognized the voice instantly. It belonged to my dad's wife, Gemma. My step mom. This wasn't too surprising since I'd called her cell phone. "Do you know it's six am?"

"Yes, morning to you too. Tell dad I'm coming home," I said and hung up to phone. That was all the warning I gave them. I didn't want to give them any details yet, not over the phone, not this phone at least. I was going to get a new phone, a pre-paid one, which meant it would be untraceable.

As I was sitting on the bed, debating whether to get breakfast I wondered why it was so quiet. That was before it hit me again. He was dead. Max was dead. "I can't do this. It's too quiet. I need a dog. I've always had one." I said to myself as I got up from the bed. I walked over to the window of my motel room and looked out. The place looked worse in the sunlight. I just shook my head. My truck was still where I'd left it. I hadn't bothered changing last night before I'd gone to bed, so I was still wearing my green top and jeans. However I was barefoot. I pulled the curtains closed so that I'd get some sort of privacy while changing into clean clothes. A plaid blouse in black and white and a pair of jeans shorts. I decided to stay barefoot. I had rented the room for a week, so I didn't need the check out just yet. I grabbed my bag, which held my computer and wallet and a few other random items. I grabbed my truck keys from table where I'd left them along with the motel room key. Then I headed to my red pickup truck. It was nine years old, but it still functioned and I loved it. I put my keys in my jeans pocket, and my phone in the other pocket. However, before I started driving I realized that it was six am. I had a feeling that nothing would be open. I was right and wrong at the same time.

I got into the truck and started driving. I wanted to get a new dog, and I was sure I'd passed a pound on my way to the motel during the night. Before I started to search for the pound, I searched for a place to get breakfast. Not before long I found a bakery. I parked the truck in their parking lot and entered the bakery. It smelled deliciously sweet.

"Hello, what can I do for you?" an elderly woman asked me as I came up to the counter. I didn't say anything I just eyed the pastries and bread. The elderly woman's hair was silver grey and arranged in curls. She was wearing a white apron with pink flowers on it, and underneath it she was wearing a blouse and pencil skirt.

"I'd like a cup of caramel latte, and a ham and cheese sandwich." I said smiling slightly. I'm fairly certain that I looked like hell. I hadn't slept for more than five or so hours. I hadn't brushed my hair. However I did have a rubber band around my wrist. So while I listened to what I would have to pay I wrapped the rubber band around my hair and created a sort of bun.

"It's coming up. That'll be five dollar please." the elderly lady said and I handed her a five-dollar bill. She took it and motioned for me to go and sit down. So I did. I sat down by one of the windows. I put my bag on the chair next to me. Every time I went into my bag to get something I made sure to be careful so that the gun wouldn't show.

The elderly lady came over to me with my sandwich and latte. She was smiling this warm smile, it was infectious. I wasn't happy at all, yet I smiled. As I sat there I slowly ate the sandwich and drank my caramel latte. I managed to stretch the time out so that it was half past seven am when I left the bakery.

When I got out I climbed back into my truck and went to search for the pound that I knew I'd seen on my way to the hotel. It took me close to half an hour to find it. I had been right. However they weren't open yet. They opened at eight am. I sighed, even though it was only a few more minutes until they opened. On the opposite street I saw that there was a hair salon. I could see that they didn't open until nine am. But that didn't bother me. I was going in to the pound either way right now.

I locked my truck and headed over to the door of the pound. It was eerily quiet when I entered. I walked up to the counter where a young woman was sitting behind it typing away on a computer. She wore a nametag that read Corey. She was wearing a simple black t-shirt and a pair of jeans. She glanced up at me.

"Hello, how may I help you?" she asked me in a sickly sweet tone of voice. It made my stomach churn.

"I'd like to adopt a dog," I said and the woman nodded. She got up from the chair she was sitting on and came around the counter. "If you follow me," she said and motioned for me to follow her. So I followed her. She opened a door, and I was hit by both the sound and smell of dogs. It made me smile. I walked along the cages and looked into each and every one of them. There was one dog in particular that got my attention. A German Sheppard. The dog wasn't old, it was barely two years old. But it only had three legs. I wondered if it could still walk.

"What's wrong with this one?" I asked and the girl from the reception didn't say anything at first.

"Oh, she was run over by a car during training to become a police dog. They did everything they could to safe the leg. But it was too badly damaged and no one wants her any more." the woman said. And I looked from the woman to the dog. I didn't care if my dog only had three legs. As long as she wasn't in pain.

"I want her," I said and pointed at the dog. She'd come up to the door of her cage. I smiled and squatted down. The woman nodded.

"Follow me and we'll fill out some paper work." I went with her and it didn't take long before we were done with the paper work. I had a new dog. When I'd signed the papers I had chosen a new name for my German Sheppard. I decided to name her after my stepmother, my dog's name became Gem.

When I had finished all the paper work the salon across the street had opened. I had gotten a leash from the pound, so I was keeping Gem in it. I crossed the street, and while I did, I kept Gem on a short leash to make sure that she wouldn't get hurt again. I didn't want to lose another dog.

When I reached the salon I opened the door. When the bell chimed I just smiled. It sounded wonderful. I poked my head in through the door while keeping Gem outside.

"Excuse me, is it okay if I bring my dog in?" I asked and the receptionist who was a man nodded. So I entered the salon. I went over to the waiting area and crouched down. I tied Gem's leash to a chair. "Now you sit here and be good girl." I said to her.

"So what do you want done?" the man asked me. He was wearing a grey t-shirt and jeans. Over it he was wearing an apron to protect his clothes from hair dye.

"I want to dye my hair dark brown," I said and he nodded and led me over to where they washed their clients hair. The salon was empty besides Gem, the employees and me. He washed my hair, and when he was done we went over to his station in the salon. As I sat in the chair I studied him in the mirror. His hair was dyed, because I could see the dark brown roots in his blond hair. He had magnificent blue eyes. But he was also old. I could see the wrinkles. While he was putting the dye in, I made sure that Gem was still sitting where I'd left her, and she was. I could see her from where I was sitting. I'd placed my bag next to her, and she was guarding it. I thought it looked cute. It made me aware of the fact that she'd had training. Sure the girl at the pound had said she'd been training to become a police dog. I shook the thought out of my head while I sat in the chair and waited for the dye to be done.

"Time to rinse it out," he said and I nodded and went with him. When he'd washed my hair once more we went back to his station. He cut my hair to remove the damaged tips and then straightened it out as he dried it.

"There you are." He said and he held up a mirror so I could see the back of my head to see how the hair looked. I nodded in approval. My hair was now a dark shade of brown, almost like chocolate.

"It's perfect." I said as I got up from the chair. It had taken almost an hour to dye all of my hair. But then again, I had quite a lot of hair on my head. I went over to the register and paid him. After I'd done that I grabbed my bag and the leash that was attached to Gem.

"Come on girl, let's go." I said to her, and out we went. I was still barefoot. The best part was feeling the ground, and the strange part was, no one had said anything about it to me.

As it was getting closer to noon, I'd driven back to the motel and parked my car there. However, I wasn't going back up to my motel room. I was going to go and buy things for Gem. So I decided to walk, so that I could stretch my legs, and let Gem stretch hers. Even though she only had three legs, she got around just fine. She could even get in and out of my truck fairly easy.

As I had bought everything I needed, I walked back to the motel, still with Gem in tow on her leash. I'd gotten her a new collar and leash, and I'd put it on her at the store. The collar was dark red, with a tag that read Gem. The leash was a matching red color. I thought it matched Gem's black and dark beige coat. I'd bought food for her, and I'd also bought two bowls for her, and an extra leash. I'd also bought a few chew toys, just to keep her from chewing up my shoes.

That night I slept a lot better. I went to bed at eleven pm, with Gem sleeping right next to me. It was comforting. I didn't wake up until Gem started barking at eight am the next day. I thought she needed to go out for a walk, but she'd been barking because there was someone out side the door.

"Gem calm down. It'd just the owner of the motel." I said to her, and she just looked at me with her big brown eyes. It made me smile. Even though she was missing her left hind leg, she was still sitting on the floor. It looked slightly funny, but I didn't say anything about it. I just walked over to her and put the leash on the collar.

"Let's go for a walk," I said and opened the door. She wagged her tail. It was interesting, ever since I'd met Gem the previous day, she'd taken to me instantly. It was quite strange. But I like it. I'd taken to her really quickly too. As soon as I'd seen her actually. Before I left the motel room I grabbed my bag, which still held my gun, laptop and a few other odds and ends. I had my keys and phone in my jeans pocket. I was wearing the same clothes as the day before, however this time I'd changed clothes before going to bed, and then changed again after waking up. It didn't take long before Gem had peed on a tree, but I kept walking, because I had a feeling that she would need to poop as well. And I was right. When Gem was done I grabbed one of the plastic bags I had with me just for this purpose, and fished up that dog poop. I tied to bag and dumped it in the nearest trashcan.

"You're a good girl." I said to Gem and gave her a liver treat. I'd bought some at the pet store yesterday. When we got back to the motel I poured water into a bowl and food in another bowl. Then I headed in to the bathroom to get cleaned off. When I'd showered I got dressed again. I had written down all the important phone numbers from my phone and then I'd dumped my phone in the same trash can I'd dumped the dog poop this morning. So now I was going to buy a pre-paid phone. Just because it wouldn't be traceable.

That was how my first week went after leaving my home in Boston. When the week was up, and Gem and me were used to each other. I left the motel. I started driving towards Charming. All the days were the same. Starting in the morning with taking Gem for a walk, then eating breakfast, and feeding her. Then getting in the truck, driving, and taking pauses here and there to let Gem pee and so I could do the same. She was always lying in the passenger seat, only so that I could keep an eye on her, and also because I didn't trust her not to fall off from the bed of the truck. Also it was easier to keep her hydrated when she was close to me. It took me three weeks to come close to Charming. And that was only because I was deliberately taking a detour. It was to make sure that my stalker wouldn't find me.

It had been a very long day for me today. It had all started with Gem barking like crazy. Someone had been trying to get into my hotel room at four in the morning. I had left Boston to go back home to Charming, the town I had been born in. I had five boxes of things, two were clothes, one was shoes and bags and the other two were just filled with books and random stuff. When I'd gotten up, I'd loaded all my boxes into my truck and then let Gem do her business before I let her settle down in the passenger seat with my bag of valuable things on the floor. I left the hotel area at five am and I drove up until eight am, and then had a pit stop for breakfast for me and food and water for Gem, and also a toilet break. This is how the rest of the day went. Every three hours I stopped to get something to drink and use the bathroom and feed and give water to Gem. As the day moved on I got closer to Charming.

As the afternoon continued to pass by, my red pick up truck decided to give up. I could see the smoke rising from the engine, the car was over heated. I managed to pull over to the side of the road before the truck gave up completely. I killed the engine, grabbed the keys of the truck, and put them in my pocket. I was wearing a pair of jeans shorts and a white tank top, with my crow tattoo fully visible on my left shoulder. My short brown hair was up in a sloppy ponytail, to keep the hair away from my face while driving, and I was driving barefoot. I refused to drive in high heels or flip flops, which where the only kind of shoes I owned. When I got out of the truck I left the door open and a few seconds later Gem had joined me at the hood of the truck. I popped it open and backed away as the smoke rose from it. "Jesus Christ." I said loudly. I fished up my cell phone from my pocket and dialed a familiar number. I would call it once and again to talk to Gemma. I listened while it rang.

"Teller-Morrow automobile repair shop, how can I help?" was the reply, and I instantly recognized the voice. It was none other than Gemma. I smiled and before I answered her question and moved over to the side of the truck, and sat down on the ground, leaving me with some shadow.

"Well I have a red pick up truck that is overheated and needs a tow," I replied as I petted Gem who'd settled down with her head in my lap.

"Let me know where you are and I'll send two of the guys to tow your truck, Cassie." I heard Gemma say on the phone. I just smiled, I knew she would recognize my voice, after all, since my mum had died I'd talked to her quite a lot.

"I'm on the highway just before the exit to Charming," I said and I got the answer that they would come by soon and pick me up and tow me back to the garage. I hung up the phone and shoved it back in to my pocket. "Well it looks like it's just you and me for a while Gem," I said as I bent down and kissed her between her ears. I was using my truck as support for my back as I leaned against it. It was extremely warm out, and so the shadow that my truck provided was a lifesaver. I couldn't say it was particularly comfortable having a warm dog's head in my lap, but since she was my precious dog, I let her.

When I'd been waiting for almost half an hour, I heard a truck pull up. I got up from the ground and dusted myself off. Gem had crawled in under my truck to get away from the heat, and she came crawling out while I was brushing off the dirt from my shorts and legs. Gem of course, being protective over me was barring her teeth at the other truck. "Gem heel," I said and she turned around and walked over to me. She settled down next to me, I was standing next to my truck and I'd closed the hood not that long ago.

Getting out of the tow truck were two guys, one who had a Mohawk and tattoos on both sides of his head, and the other one had a full head of dirty blonde hair. Both of them were wearing their cuts, over their garage shirts, however only one of them was a patched member. It was the Mohawk guy who was patched in. I didn't say anything about it.

"Get to work shit head," were the first words out of the mouth of the patched member.

"You know I can hear you right?" I asked as I crossed my arms over my chest. Gem was sitting on the ground between my feet, watching the two guys.

"What? Half Sack is a grunt." was the reply I got, and the fact that Mr. Mohawk called the other guy Half Sack made me wonder if that was actually his name. If it was, then it was a weird name.

"What ever you say. Now shut up and get my truck towed," I said as I headed back to the driver's seat of the truck. I had no intentions of sitting in the tow truck with two guys who seemed to be morons. I'd rather sit in my broken truck.

"Gem, come on girl," I said as I opened the door to the truck. She bounced up into the truck and settled down on the passenger seat. I settled down in the driver's seat and watched as the two guys were working on hooking my car up to the tow truck.

As we reached the garage and they pulled to a stop I got out of the truck easily with Gem following me. "Touch my truck and you're dead meat," I said to the two guys that had towed my truck. I did not trust them to work on my truck, what so ever. With my dog trailing after me I entered office. I closed the door behind me when Gem had come in.

"Hi baby," Gemma said as she looked up from the paperwork briefly. She was wearing glasses, and she had blonde streaks in her otherwise dark brown hair. I smiled as I sat down on the couch. "How are you sweet heart?" Gemma asked me when I didn't speak and I just shrugged.

"Fucking truck broke down. It's a piece of shit, and nine years old." I said sourly. It was so annoying that it'd broke down when I was almost at my destination.

"The boys will fix it." Gemma said as she got up from the chair and came over to me. "I can give you a ride over to the house, so you can get settled in." she said as she got up from the couch. I cocked an eyebrow I had no idea that they'd set up a house for me.

"House? Did you buy me a house?" I asked Gemma and she just smiled. I couldn't believe her. I'd called her four weeks earlier, and she'd already set up a house for me.

"So, do you want a ride?" Gemma asked and I just nodded. I got up from the couch, went over to the door, and opened it. I watched as Gem ran past me. I heard Gemma pick up her bag, and she walked up to me.

"Do you have any boxes?" Gemma asked me and I nodded as I walked out through the door, following Gem over to the truck.

"There are five boxes, and my bag." I said as I kept walking. I had my bag slung over my shoulder. I seldom left it anywhere, not without being able to see it. However what Gemma said next stopped me dead in my tracks. "Hang on Cassandra, we'll get the prospect to help us. He's in the clubhouse."

"Okay, but the boxes aren't that heavy," I said as I followed Gemma into the clubhouse. Some of the boys had walked in before us. The first thing I saw when I entered the clubhouse was Half Sack with his pants pulled down and his cock out. I glanced at it and then came to a realization.

"So that's why they call you Half Sack." I said after I'd stifled a laugh. He looked outright ridiculous with just one nut. However, I was also getting slightly flustered by the situation. I'd just met the guy, and I'd already seen his cock.

"Yeah, I lost my left nut in Iraq." Half Sack responded with a goofy grin on his face. "But it still functions properly," he added hastily as an after thought. It made me burst out in laughter. When I'd stopped laughing I responded to his comment.

"I'll take your word for it," I said as I looked over at Gemma who just had her arms crossed over her chest and it gave me a feeling that this wasn't the first time she'd seen his balls.

"Put your deformed nut bag away, shit head." Clay said from somewhere behind me and I couldn't help but to smile. No one knew that he was my father besides Gemma, and he didn't seem too happy to see me back home.

"Come on prospect, you're helping us." Gemma said and I just snickered as I walked back outside, because I could hear Gem barking. Most of the time it meant trouble and that was why I went outside. However, this time she wasn't barking because of trouble.

"Gem, heel," I said and she came running over to me. She'd been barking because she couldn't find me. It was quite interesting. She was highly protective over me, for being a dog, especially since she'd only known me for about four weeks.

I sat down on the bed of my truck while I waited for Gemma to come back out again. When she did she had Half Sack in tow. They came up to me. "So where's the stuff?" Half Sack asked and I pointed at the five boxes behind me.

"Oh yea, Gemma this is my dog, Gem." I said smiling, and Gemma burst out laughing. Half Sack on the other hand was busy carrying two of my boxes over to Gemma's car.

"Come on. Let's grab a box each, and get this to go faster." I said and Gemma just looked at me. I just cocked my eyebrow as I grabbed a box and headed over to Gemma's car. Half Sack had opened the trunk of her car. Three boxes would fit in there. The other two would have to go in the back seat, along with Gem.

Gemma didn't grab she just came walking over. My German Sheppard was already by the car with me. "Go get the other two boxes shit head." Gemma said to Half Sack. While she did that I opened the door to the back seat. "Come on Gem." I said, and she looked at me, and then jumped into the back seat. I rolled down the window and then closed the door. I settled down in the passenger seat, and Gemma was still standing waiting for Half Sack to come with the last two boxes. When they were in the car Gemma got in.

It took ten minutes to reach the house. It was in a neighborhood where all the houses looked the same. One floor, with a small yard in the front and a short driveway up to the garage. The garage was tied together with the house. There was one-step up to the front door. From the outside it looked okay. It was beige with a brown door. Half Sack had followed us on his bike. A white one.

"Really Gemma?" I asked incredulously. I couldn't believe she'd made him come here to help us, but I didn't mind when I thought about it. It meant I wouldn't have to carry boxes. Even if it was only five of them.

"Shut up. Come on." Gemma said as she got out of the car. I just shook my head and got out as well. I opened the door to the back seat and let Gem out. She was sniffing the air, and then wagged her tail. It made me smile. I left the door to the back seat open since I knew Half Sack would get the boxes.

I entered the house after Gemma had unlocked the front door. When I entered the house the kitchen was to the left of the hallway, and to the right there was a hallway leading to four different doors, and straight ahead was the living room. It wasn't the biggest place, but it was still a nice place. I looked into the kitchen and saw the mismatched furniture, I thought it looked homey. And on the door there was a dog door. It leads out to the backyard. I walked over to the door and looked out. It was a door with a glass window. The backyard was fenced in, and even had a doghouse.

"Gemma it's wonderful." I said as I saw how Gem kept walking around the kitchen. I had a feeling that she could smell something. I saw the dog bowls next to the door the lead to the backyard.

"I thought you'd like it. There's more to see." Gemma said as she put her bag down on the kitchen table. I put mine right next to her. That was when Half Sack came in with two boxes.

"Where do you want 'em?" He asked and I looked at Gemma before I answered. "The bedroom." I said and Gemma pointed down the hallway and said, "First door on the right is the master bedroom. The door next to it is the walk in closet. The door at the end of the hall is the bathroom and the door across from the master bedroom is the guest bedroom. There's furniture in ever room already." Gemma said and I watched as Half Sack disappeared down the hallway while I went from the kitchen and into the living room. It had an old big leather couch in black, and a small coffee table made out of oak. There was a bookcase that was combined with a tv bench standing along side the wall and there was a tv standing on it. There were also some books in the bookcase, along with some framed pictures. The pictures were of Gemma and Clay, and there were even some of my mum and me. I knew those pictures. Those were pictures I'd sent to Clay. I smiled as I looked at them.

I saw Half Sack go out through the door again and coming back in with another two boxes. He brought them into the bedroom as well. This time I went with him to the bedroom. In there, there was a big king sized bed, simple with four posts, and the wall to the left there was a row of closets, and just before the row of closets there was a door, which would lead into the bathroom. I opened the door and poked my head in. The bathroom looked good. What I found interesting was that it was stocked.

"Gemma did you stock this place with food and other stuff?" I asked and she just laughed. "You shouldn't have." I said and that was when Half Sack came in with the last box.

"That's all. I am curious, how do you two know each other?" Half Sack asked and I looked over at Gemma, and she looked at me. In other words, I would have to answer that question. Just as I was about to answer Gem barked and jumped up on to the bed.

"Sorry about that. Gem is excited to get settled in. And I've known Gemma for years. Not that it's any of your business. So scram," I said to Half Sack, and he did as I said. He left. It made me laugh.

"Where did you find that one?" I asked and Gemma just shrugged her shoulders. I shook my head and headed out into the kitchen. I went over to the kitchen table.

"You gonna help me out with the fundraiser?" Gemma asked and I looked over at her with my eyebrow cocked.

"It's the Taste of Charming Fundraiser. We're raising money for the art programs at middle school." Gemma said and I thought about it. It would be a perfect opportunity to get a foot in the door at the school. I needed a job, and I wouldn't mind working at a school. Then again, I'd just upped and left the school I'd been working at in Boston.

"Sure I'll help you out." I said and smiled slightly. I started to rummage through my bag for my phone. I'd dumped it in it earlier. First I picked up my laptop, and that was when I realized that I should fill up Gem's food bowl. I went over to the cupboards and started opening them, one by one until I found the dog food.

"That sounds good…. Why do you have a gun?" Gemma asked me and I looked over at her. She was holding my handgun in her hand.

"You know why." I said and she nodded. That was when I saw that she noticed the serial number.

"Here take mine, it's the same as yours, but it's better to be safe." Gemma said and I nodded. I knew what she meant. So she took my gun and put it in her bag, and took her gun and put it in my bag.

"I'll see you bright and early tomorrow." Gemma said and I nodded. She headed out the door, and I heard her car start up, and a few seconds later I heard a bike start up. I shook my head. I went over to the front door and locked it. It wasn't particularly late, but I was tired. I'd filled Gem's food bowl and water bowl. I grabbed my bag and my laptop and went into the bedroom. I put my bag on one of the bedside tables, and I put the laptop on the other one. I left my bedroom door open, so that Gem could come in if she wanted to. I then pulled the curtains closed and pulled off my clothes. I still had my panties on, and when I opened the closets I found them filled with clothes. I found what I was looking for. A t-shirt to sleep in. I'd always loved sleeping in t-shirts.

It was nine pm when I crawled in to bed. Gem came in five minutes later and jumped up on the bed. She settled down right next to me on the bed. I didn't fall asleep right away. I was awake for another hour, thinking while petting Gem's head. I was looking forward to the fundraiser. I had helped with a few fundraisers back in Boston, but only by contributing with my song. This time around I'd be helping Gemma out. I couldn't really fall asleep. Even though I was exhausted from being awake since five am. I was to wound up from today.

Since I couldn't get to sleep, I just got up instead. I grabbed one of the boxes, this one was filled with shoes. I unpacked them and put them all in the bottom of the first closet, along with the handbags. The next two boxes where clothes. I added all the clothes to the existing ones. Some of the clothes in the closets I knew wouldn't fit me. Or rather, weren't my style.

When I only had two boxes left I went out into the living room and unpacked them there. I also had some dog stuff. So the toys I put on the floor in the living room next to the dog bed I'd just spotted. When I'd done that I went back to bed. It was eleven pm when I crawled into the bed a second time. Gem was still in the bed. This time I did fall asleep.


	2. First Day Back Hell

**A/N: Thank you for your reviews. Reviews makes me happy, and spurr me to write more. **

**The full chapter title is First Day Back = Hell?**

**I hope you enjoy it.**

* * *

I can't say the day started particularly well. I was woken up by the sound of a car honking. "What the fuck?" I said out loud and watched as Gem came racing back in. She'd obviously been awake for a while. The upside of having a fenced in backyard and a dog door. I didn't have to get up early and take my dog for a walk, or let her out. She could get out on her own. And she'd obviously been out and been spooked by the person honking the car. I got up from the comfort of my bed and headed over to the front door. I looked out through the peephole and saw Gemma in her car. I opened the door and waved to her.

"Good morning," she said when she reached me at the doorway. I headed into the kitchen, I needed coffee. It was too early to be awake. Or at least I thought so until I saw the clock on the wall. It was nine am already. I still hadn't responded to Gemma's good morning, because I was still basically asleep. And that was because I hadn't gotten my coffee. I could find the coffee pot, but I couldn't find the coffee.

"Gemma, where's the coffee?" I asked because I was too tired to search for it. She pointed to the cupboard above the coffee maker. I sighed and she just laughed. I made the coffee and stared at the coffee pot as I waited for it to be ready.

"Cass, did you really sleep in that t-shirt?" Gemma asked me and that was when I realized that I was still in my pjs. I just nodded in response. I needed coffee to function properly in the mornings. I'd been that way since I'd started working at the school.

"Stop Gemma, not in the mood," I said sleepily and then stifled a yawn. I looked at the coffee pot again. I just kept wishing it was done already. I could now smell the coffee. I sighed and squatted down. Gem was sitting by my feet. I sat down on the floor and petted Gem's head, she licked my face.

"Damn, you are like your old man," Gemma said and I looked up at her. I just rolled my eyes at her and turned my attention back to Gem who was still licking my face. I'd gotten used to it while I'd been on my way back here. Gem had woken me up several mornings by either licking my face or barking and then licking my face. I didn't mind it one bit. Max used to do it all the time.

"The coffee is done," Gemma said and I looked up at her. She was sitting at the kitchen table with her bag in front of her. She was obviously waiting for me to go with her to the fundraiser. I just sighed and got up from the floor. Gem trotted out through the dog door again. I turned around and reached into the cupboard to get a cup, and smiled when I saw the size of them. They were huge. It suited me perfect. I filled the cup up, and then sat down at the kitchen table with Gemma. When I'd taken a sip of it I already felt better.

"I function better with coffee," I said as I cradled the cup in my hands. It smelled amazing, and it tasted just as good.

"I know sweet heart." Gemma said and she stayed seated. I had a feeling that she had more to tell me. To me it was too early to talk about anything that didn't involve my coffee.

"You know Clay isn't happy that you're back." Gemma said and I just sighed. I was not in the mood. I took another gulp of the coffee.

"He'll have to deal with it. And I'm not in the mood Gemma," I said frustrated as I glared at the coffee in my cup. I'd already drank half of it.

"Cassie, are you going to let the boys know that he's your father?" Gemma asked me and I just shook my head.

"Can we just leave it be, at least until later?" I asked and this time around Gemma nodded. I drained the cup of the last of the coffee and then got up and put it in the sink.

"I'm going to get dressed. So you stay put Gemma," I said, I didn't want her snooping around. Not that I had too much here that was mine. I went in to my bedroom and over to the closets. I opened all three and checked what clothes I could find. There was a lot. I found a lovely white tank top with a crow on it, it made me smile. I put it on along with a pair of jeans shorts.

"How did you know my size Gemma?" I asked and she just shrugged her shoulders. She was still seated by my kitchen table. I eyed her out before I felt a wet tongue against the palm of my hand. I looked down and it was Gem wanting my attention. I scratched her behind her ears.

"Come on, let's go." Gemma said and got up from the chair. I cocked an eyebrow and just shook my head. I walked over to the living room and grabbed Gem's leash. I connected it to the collar and then brought her with me out to Gemma's car.

"I hope you don't mind." I said as I opened the door to the back seat. I was still amazed at how easily Gem got around with just three legs. She got into the car easily.

"As long as the dog doesn't mess the car up." Gemma said and I just laughed as I was about to sit down in the car I realized I'd forgotten my bag.

"I'll be right back, and don't worry. Gem's a good dog." I said as I ran back in to the house. I ran around in the house not being able to find my bag, not until I entered the bedroom, there it was on the bedside table. Where I'd left it. I grabbed the bag and opened it. Gun and ammo was still in it. That was all. I had the keys in my pocket, phone and wallet nowhere to be seen.

"For fucks sake," I cursed as I started running around the house again. I found the pre-paid phone, in the couch. I had no idea how it'd gotten there. It was on the bedside table when I went to bed last night. I sighed and dumped the phone in my bag. It made me realize that I would have to buy a proper phone. As I was searching for my wallet I heard the car horn. Gemma was getting impatient. I shook my head, just as I found my wallet. It was on the counter in the kitchen.

"I'm coming Gemma." I shouted as I walked out the door again. I fished up my keys, locked the door, and got into the passenger seat next to Gemma. She looked sort of angry I just smiled at it.

"Not my fault. Someone's been moving my stuff around." I said as Gemma put the car in gear and started driving. She looked over at me for a second and then focused on the road again.

"Or you put it there and forgot it." Gemma answered and I just shrugged. She could be right. I'd done it before. It didn't take us long to reach the school where the fundraiser was going to be held. I was going to help Gemma set up, along with some other women. When we reached the school Gemma parked the car and I grabbed Gem's leash just as she made her way out of the car. Gemma showed me around the yard of school and made her way up to the booth and tables that were set up for Sam Crow.

"Girls this is Cassandra." Gemma said and no one asked her any questions about. This was a first for me. Normally people would just torment me with questions about where I came from, who I was. That was the upside of Gemma being the queen of Sam Crow. I waved to them and they waved backed.

"This is Luann," Gemma said as she introduced me to a woman with dirty blonde hair, and a blouse covered with flowers. I just nodded and set about helping with packing things up. I wasn't paying much attention to what was being said. I'd tied Gem's leash to one of the poles that kept the roof up. It was blue and white striped. I didn't want Gem to eat the food that was being served, so therefore I'd tied her up. But I'd also put a bowl of water next to her, and she seemed to be content in the shadow.

As I continued to put stuff up I started to listen to the conversation again. It had taken a turn to something about busses. I cocked and eyebrow and looked over Gemma before I squatted down to pick some plates up.

"Tell everyone to leave room for the busses," Gemma said as she held a stack of plates in her hands. I just shook my head. I still couldn't believe how Gemma managed to pull these things together, but then again, I was never good at planning things out.

"Who we bussing?" the blonde asked, the one Gemma had introduced to me as Luann. I didn't say anything, I just listened in on the conversation as I went about my business. While they were talking I saw this brunette come walking up to our booth. I wondered what she wanted but since I knew Gemma fairly well, I knew not to butt in unless she asked for my opinion today and tomorrow. It was because she'd worked for a while to set this thing up.

"Oakdale assisted living." Gemma answered as she went about moving even more plates. Luann was holding navy blue napkins that she was stacking in a neat pile on the table. "Seniors are all kinds of compulsive gamblers. Triples our raffle dollars. God bless social security." Gemma finished with and then smiled at Luann who smiled back at her, at the same time both of them were rearranging things. I just walked over to the pot of food and looked down into it. Chili. I wasn't too surprised. The brunette I'd seen earlier walking towards the booth now started talking to Gemma. That was when I squatted down next to my German Sheppard and patted her head.

"Gemma," the woman said with an apologetic smile. I wondered what it was about, so I sat there in the shadow eavesdropping.

"Oh, hey April. 'Preciate you coming to help." Gemma said as she stood there watching April. I thought April looked worried, but I didn't say anything about it, then again, I was supposed to be minding my own business, but I wasn't. I'd learned from the master herself.

"No problem… Can I ask you something?" the brunette asked, looking all kinds of worried. It made me wonder what had actually happened. There was a lot that I didn't know about the club and my family.

"What?" Gemma asked as I saw how she titled her head slightly. I wondered what her facial expression looked like, however there was no way for me to see it since I only saw the back of her head.

"Charlie's band's playing during the fireworks tomorrow night. He really wants his dad to come." April said and turned her head to what was my right, which was also where the scene was set up. Which made sense seeing as April was talking about a band.

"Uh. Shit, April.. I… I don't think Clay's gonna go for it." Gemma said shaking her head. She obviously knew what Clay's reaction would be which didn't surprise me what so ever.

"Ah, I'd never ask anything like this. Me and you understand what went down, but my kids… Charlie doesn't know. It breaks his heart that his dad can't come to anything around here, not the baseball games, no school stuff…" she pleaded with Gemma, trying to get her to get her to talk to Clay.

"A 'right, a'right, a'right. I'll bring it up to Clay." Gemma surrendered, which I found strange. I was going to question Gemma about it when April was out of earshot.

"Thank you." April said looking genuinely glad that Gemma had agreed to try and talk to Clay.

"I can't promise anything." Gemma said as she turned around and went back to working on arranging things. April just stood there awkwardly for a few moments before scurrying along putting herself to use.

"What was that about?" I asked genuinely curious and I also thought it would be good if I knew what it was about in case a fight broke out about it. Then maybe I'd be able to help defuse. Or at least that was what I thought.

"What?" Gemma asked as she turned around and faced me. I was still sitting on the ground with my arm around Gem whom was licking my face. "And do you always let your dog lick you like that?" she asked me and I just laughed lightly.

"I was wondering what went down that's stopping that woman's kids' dad to come here." I said and just ignored her question about me letting my dog lick me. It was something that made me feel secure. Mostly it was just my hand she'd lick but when I was sitting close like this, I'd let Gem lick my face too.

"Oh that. Her old man is the reason Opie spent five years in Chino." Gemma said without elaborating it. I had a feeling I didn't want to know more, so I didn't push the subject at all. I had no idea at all why he wasn't allowed in Charming. But if it had something to do with why Opie had been sent to Chino, it probably was something bad, which led me to believe that I didn't want to know more. I went back to working on putting things in order. Around noon Gemma came up to me again.

"Come on, let's go to the garage and see if they've fixed your truck yet." Gemma said and I nodded. I walked over to Gem and untied her leash, I'd kept her tied to the pole all morning, she hadn't minded, she'd been able to walk around there. I grabbed her bowl and turned it upside down to empty out the last of the water. I untied Gem's leash and headed for the parking area where Gemma had parked her car. I got in the car along with Gem and it didn't take long before we reached the garage.

When we reached the garage Clay wasn't there yet. So Gemma went in to the office to get some work done while she waited for him. Meanwhile I headed over to the clubhouse and sat down on the picnic table outside. I was going to stay away while Gemma dealt with my dad. I knew that he wasn't too happy with me being back, and I wasn't going to give him more reasons to be annoyed with me.

"Hey," the blonde guy from the previous day said as he walked up to the bench I was sitting on. Gem growled slightly and I just shushed her by putting my hand up.

"Well if it isn't the moron who likes to flash his cock at people he just met." I said as I unhooked the leash from Gem's collar. I folded it and put it in my handbag, which was big and filled with barely anything. But it was big because I needed to be able to fit the dog bowl into it. The only other thing I had in my bag was my keys, since I had my phone stuffed into my pocket along with my wallet.

"Sorry about that. So you new around here?" Half Sack asked me and I turned my head and looked at him. I was new here in one sense. In another not so much seeing as I was born in Charming.

"Not really," I said, and it was partially true. I just turned my attention back to Gem, and after a while looking at the row of bikes lined up. That was an image I had gotten photos of from Gemma, along with photos of the guys the bikes belonged to.

"So what brings you here, besides your truck?" he asked me and it got me to turn my head again. I cocked my eyebrow slightly. Just before I was going to answer I saw Clay and Jax returning on their bikes. I watched them and saw Clay heading up to the garage where Gemma was standing leaning against a wall. Jax was headed our way. I turned my head back to Half Sack and looked at him.

"Nothing in particular. I just wanted to see the town I was born in." I said shrugging my shoulders. I had no problem with lying to people. I just didn't keep too many major secrets from them. I had a few, but they were mine to keep.

"Oh you have family here?" he asked me and I shook my head just as Jax came up to us. Gem started growling again and I had to shush her.

"I'm sorry, she isn't used to this many new people in such a short amount of time." I said apologetically. I couldn't exactly control Gem's growling. But then again, she was supposed to be a guard dog. Therefore, to me it was good that she was acting like one. Jax walked past us and basically ignored us. I snickered at that.

"Did you do something to offend him?" I asked and Half Sack just shrugged at first then he said, "Maybe he was in a rush to the toilet." Half Sack's comment about the toilet made me burst out into laughter and he looked at my funnily.

"Cassie," I heard my name being called, and so I looked up. It was Gemma. I rolled my eyes and stayed seated. I wasn't in the mood of talking to her right now. However, she wasn't going to let me be alone. She just called my name again, so I got up from the picnic table and headed over to where she was. "Here are your keys. And don't forget to be on time tomorrow." Gemma said as she handed me my keys. I was so glad my truck was done.

"Don't worry, I'll be on time. But I think I'm going to stick around here for a while," I said and then dumped my bag in my car and pocketed my car keys. Gem was walking around the lot sniffing. I wondered what it was she was searching for. Instead of calling her to come to me, I let her continue to sniff around. I knew she'd come running right back to me as soon as I called her name.

I went back to the picnic table and settled back down on it. I kept an eye on Gem as she sniffed around, I didn't want her to get hurt, and I had a feeling the guys were armed. Even I had a gun, albeit it was in my bag at the moment. Half Sack had disappeared into the clubhouse while I'd been talking to Gemma, so instead of going in I waited outside. I sat in the sun, soaking in it. It was comfortable. After a while, the guys were starting to come out of the clubhouse. I wanted to talk to Clay but he evaded me. However, Half Sack came up to me, along with two other guys, I know who the blonde one was. My stepbrother, Jax. The other one was the Mohawk guy again.

I watched as Jax took a cigarette and lit it. Before he said anything, he took a drag of it. "What is a girl like you doing here?" he asked and I just cocked an eyebrow as I heard a bike roar up. One of the other guys was leaving. The sound made Gem come running up to me. Since I was already sitting on the picnic table, Gem sat down by my feet. She was growling, so I just petted her head and she stopped almost instantly.

"Getting my truck that broke down yesterday back, and talking to a friend of mine," I said not even bothering to look at Jax while talking to him.

"And who's your friend?" Jax asked and I glanced over at him as I saw him puff out a cloud of smoke. It was just tendrils of smoke.

"None of your business. And I should get back home." I said as I pushed myself off the picnic table. It wasn't that late yet, but I planned on stopping buy a store and buying myself a new phone.

"At least tell me your name before you leave," was what I heard next, however it wasn't Jax who spoke up, and it was Half Sack. I turned around and started walking backwards. As I was walking, Gem got up and followed me.

"It's Cassandra," I said and turned back around and continued to walk to my truck. It didn't take too long to reach it. I opened the passenger door and Gem jumped up into the seat. When I'd closed the door, I went around the front of the truck and climbed in to the driver's seat.

"It runs a lot better," I said to myself as I drove out of the lot. I drove out to the highway and headed to the closest big city where I'd be able to find a store that sold phones. It didn't take me too long.

I parked the car and left Gem in the car, with the window rolled down enough for her to get air. I didn't want to bring her with me, not this time. I entered the store and looked around. I knew exactly what kind of phone I wanted. I bought an iPhone. It was just what I wanted. I got a silver one, and bought a red shell to it. The red was a similar shade as the red color I had on my truck. When I had my new phone and the number for it, I pocketed the phone and headed back to my truck. It took me almost half an hour to get back to Charming. When I was back in Charming I drove past the Teller-Morrow garage, I could see the lights on in the office, and a few bikes were still there. I didn't stop, I just continued to drive, I was heading back home. It was after all closer to seven pm.

When I got home I parked the truck on the driveway at first, because I had to open the door to the garage manually, and that was only because the remote didn't work. When I opened the garage door I saw immediately why the remote wouldn't work. The cord connection the door to the opener was separated. I sighed as I stood there staring at it. When I had gotten out of the truck, I'd closed the door after me and the bark of Gem brought me back to the present and I turned around. I smiled slightly at my forgetfulness and walked over to the passenger door of the truck and opened it. Gem got out and walked up the step and sat down in front of the front the door. I just climbed back into my truck and drove it into the empty garage. The inside of the garage was boring, it was just grey, the color of concrete.

When I'd parked the truck and put it in park, I got out of it. I grabbed my bag from the passenger seat and then locked the car. I closed the garage door and then headed in to the house through the kitchen door. I dumped my bag on the couch as I passed it on my way to the front door to let Gem in. Gem came in and she went straight for the kitchen, where the two bowls were. I just sighed as I closed the door again, and made sure to lock it. I went in to the kitchen and made sure to lock that door as well. While I was in the kitchen I stood there and just looked out the window for a few seconds. A fleeting thought about what had happened to me in the past came and went. I shook it from my mind and turned my back to the window. I went over to the cupboards and opened all of them. I was checking to see what I had. I had everything I needed in a kitchen. I also had a lot of food. I smiled as I grabbed a bowl. From the fridge I grabbed an assortment of vegetables and made me a salad. When the salad was done, I put some on a plate and ate it.

"Okay Gem, I'm going to take a shower. Should I leave the door open?" I asked my dog, and she just barked. I knew that it was strange to talk to my dog, yet I did. I had always talked to my dog. It was a hard habit to break. I had put my plate in the sink and headed over to the other end of the house. I took my bag with me from the couch as I went. I had no intentions of letting it lay around. I put it on my bed instead.

It didn't take me long to get out of my clothes. Well in the bathroom I dropped it all on the floor and went in to the shower. I turned the hot water on and just let it wash all over me for a while. I then proceeded with washing my body and my hair. It didn't take too long to wash my hair, seeing as it was fairly short now. When I got out of the shower I wrapped one towel around my hair and another around my body. I walked out of the bathroom and into my bedroom. I checked the time. It was closer to ten pm now. I sighed slightly and walked over to the closets that I'd left open that morning. I grabbed a t-shirt, it was navy blue with the word SAMCRO printed in bold capital letters. I wasn't too surprised, and I didn't care either. They were comfortable to sleep in, but then again, I always slept in t-shirts.

I settled down on the bed with my laptop. I was searching for pianos. I wanted to get my hands on a piano, it was the only thing missing in this house. I of course had internet, Gemma had taken care of that. So as I was searching the web for preferably a used piano, since they were cheaper, and made better music. At least in my ears. Especially after I retuned it. As I continued to search online time passed and it didn't take long until I started to yawn.

That was when Gem came in and jumped up and placed herself on the bed. I closed the laptop and set it down on the bedside table where I'd taken it from before I started searching for a piano. It was close to midnight, and I knew Gemma would kill me if I was late for the fundraiser.

I crawled in under the cover and my gorgeous German Sheppard just curled up right next to me. It didn't take me long to fall asleep. However I didn't get a restful sleep. I was haunted by nightmares, but the nightmares weren't just nightmares, they were also memories. Memories I was trying hard to suppress. When I woke up I felt worse than I had before I went to bed. I sighed as I ventured out to the kitchen. Thankfully, Gemma was nowhere to be found.

I easily found the coffee and the mugs this morning. I just smiled to myself as I made the coffee. It didn't take long for it to be done. When it was I sipped it slowly while leaning against the counter. I was looking out through the kitchen window. In the backyard I saw Gem digging. I just sighed. I put the cup down on the counter and picked up the two dog bowls. I washed both of them out and then filled one with water and put it down on the floor again. When I'd done that I got out the dog feed and put it in the second bowl after I'd made sure it was dry. I put it on the floor next to the water bowl.

I went back over to the counter and grabbed my coffee cup. I went out into the living room and turned on the tv. I had the news on, not paying attention to it. I was too engrossed in my cup of coffee.

When I'd finished my coffee I made breakfast, which consisted of milk and cereals. While I was eating it I saw Gem eating her own food.

"I think you'll stay home today. I don't want you to be spooked by the people." I said to Gem and she just looked up at me for a few seconds before going back to her food. It made me laugh. When I'd finished my breakfast I put the dishes in the dishwasher. I was still wearing the t-shirt when I heard a knock on my door. "Who can it be? No one knows I live here, besides Gemma." I thought to myself as I made my way over to the door. I had on purpose not registered my move. I did not want anyone to know I lived here. I'd even changed my last name again. While I'd lived with my mum and up until I left Boston I'd had my mother's maiden name, Eden as my last name. However, right now I had no last name, not registered at least. I was planning on changing it to Morrow though.

When I reached the door I looked out through the peephole. It was some guy I didn't recognize. I didn't open the door, or acknowledge the fact that I knew he was there. Not even when Gem came running in barking. I just went in to the back of the house, to my bedroom. Well there I grabbed my gun and put it in the waist of my shorts that I'd just pulled on. I didn't want to put the gun in the waistband of my briefs. The knocking had ceased and when I looked out the peephole, there was no one there.

"Could it get any worse?" I asked myself as I headed back to my bedroom. I was going to get dressed and ready for the day. I took the gun out of the waistband of the shorts and put it on my bedside table. While I was standing in the bedroom I pulled off the shorts and the t-shirt. I grabbed a black bra that matched my briefs and put it on. I had my hair down because I liked it that way. While I was looking through the dresses hanging in the closet I found one I liked. It was white with a gorgeous pattern. The pattern was made up of circle and squares in beige and brown. It had a black and beige striped ribbon around the waist that went up the back as a cross and around to create the straps that kept the dress up. The dress went all the way down to just above my knees and with it I was wearing a pair of black high heeled pumps.

I grabbed a smaller black bag and put the gun in it, it was loaded and the safety was on. I put the gun in a pocket that had a sipper, that way I wouldn't have to explain why there was a gun in my bag incase anyone saw it. I put my keys and phone down in the bag as well and then slung it over my shoulder.

"Stay," I said to Gem who had settled down on the couch. I didn't mind that she was on the couch, I would let her be anywhere I'd be if she felt like it. But then again, I loved my dog. When I went out the door I made sure to lock it. I headed over to the garage, where my truck was. I had open the garage door manually again, and made a mental note to fix it. When I'd backed the truck out on to the drive way I got out, but I left my shoes and the bag in the car. I refused to drive in high heels, so I put them on the passenger seat. I wasn't going to drive away from what was now my home until I'd made sure all doors were locked. So I closed the garage door manually and then drove off.

It didn't take me long to reach the school where the fundraiser was held. I was of course on time and I knew it'd please Gemma. When I'd parked the truck I grabbed my heels from the passenger seat and put them on. After that I grabbed my handbag and slung it over my shoulder. I locked the truck and headed over to the booth where Sam Crow was set up.

"Morning Gemma," I said as I came up to her. She just nodded, she was in full swing of putting the last touch on everything. To the right of our booth we had another big space. It had mirrors and Elvis props.

"Yea, yea. Get to work," was the response I got from Gemma, it made me laugh, but instead of arguing with her, I just walked around the tables that made up our place and started to help her out.

"Why do we have an Elvis station?" I asked off hand, and the answer came from Luann who just walked up to us.

"Bobby. He is an Elvis impersonator." she said and I just shrugged. I didn't know who he was. But then again, I hadn't met that many of the guys yet and what knowledge I had of them came from Gemma. I took notice of what Gemma was wearing. A gorgeous brown top and a pair of jeans with a pair of high heels. Casual yet gorgeous. Luann on the other hand was wearing a black top with a jeans miniskirt. I felt over dressed, but I didn't care. I liked the dress I was wearing.

People were starting to arrive and I could feel a lot of eyes on me. I wasn't too surprised though. I was the new person around after all. And not many of them had seen me before. Sure, some of them probably remembered my mum, and a lot of people who knew my mother said I was the spitting image of her. And I'd have to agree after I'd seen photographs of her when she was around my age.

"Well is he any good?" I asked as I grabbed a bowl and used the ladle to pour up chili in the paper bowls, so that people could come up and just pay for them and take a bowl. I didn't pour up many, seeing as I didn't want it to go cold. No one would want cold chili, even though it was edible cold, it was preferred to be eaten warm.

"He is. He should be here soon," Gemma said as she looked over at a clock that was on the school building. I just shrugged and went back to paying attention to what I was doing. As an hour had passed and still no Bobby, Gemma pulled me aside.

"What?" I asked crossing my arms over my chest.

"Go to the garage and see if Bobby has left yet." Gemma told me and I just nodded. I knew better than to anger Gemma. I'd heard some stories from my dad and some rather horrific stories from my mother when I was younger. I drove off and headed for the club house. It didn't take me long to reach it. I drove up on to the lot and parked my truck close to the clubhouse. I left my high heels in the truck this time. I was too lazy to put them back on, at least for just walking over to the clubhouse.

I opened the door to the clubhouse and entered it. I didn't think about announcing myself when I entered, and it was a mistake. The first thing I saw was Piney sitting by the bar and Clay leaning against it. On the end of the bar a guy with a shave head was sitting, with his hand down his pants. He was playing with himself. I tilted my head and stared for a few seconds. I didn't even notice that Half Sack was in the room.

"What is it with you guys and dicks?" I blurted out without thinking. As I stood there he pulled his hand out of his trousers. It earned me chuckles from the guys.

"What are you doing in here?" was the response I got from Clay who'd turned around and walked up to me. It was clear that he wasn't happy about the fact that I was in the clubhouse.

"Gemma asked me to come and see if Bobby had left already." I said as I put my focus on Clay instead of on the guy with a shaved head. That was when I saw Half Sack from the corner of my eye. He was messing up his hair with his right hand.

"I have this condition. 'M not even gonna worry about it. CMD, compulsive masturbation disorder." he took a short pause before continuing to speak. "I couldn't get the right meds in Stockton. So it's a little out of control right now." the guy said and I just shuddered at the thought. That was when Clay got a hold of my attention again by speaking.

"Uhu. He left already." Clay said and I nodded. I didn't feel like sticking around, hearing about why a grown man was masturbating in public. And when Piney chimed in with ,"You know, I used to have that and then I uh turned thirteen," I just hurried out. It was getting too creepy and I didn't want to hear more of that conversation. When I got out of the clubhouse I hurried over to my truck.

In ten minutes I was back at the school, trying to shake the images out of my head. It was easier said than done. I put my heels back on and went back to the booth that we had set up.

"Hey baby," Gemma said as I walked up, I smiled and gave her a hug. I looked over at the Elvis station, and there he was. I rolled my eyes. He looked the part at least, and it seemed like the kids were having fun as well.

"I hate clowns," I said when I spotted a clown over by the egg toss. I turned away so I didn't see the clown any more. Clowns had creeped me out since I was a kid.

"Why is that Cassie?" came the question from Luann, I just looked over at her and I didn't say anything. I just went back to arranging things and then serving food to those who wanted it. I was not in the mood to talk about clowns and why I hated them. Especially not in a place with a lot of people around. My feet was not friends with me at the moment, the high heels were uncomfortable. But that happens when you were brand new high heels. So I inched out of them making sure no one saw me do it, and pushed them under the table.

"Drop it Luann," Gemma said quickly, and it took me by surprise. I mouthed a thank you to Gemma and then shrugged it off and went back to working. I was serving food when Jax came up and grabbed a chip from the bowl, I slapped him with the spatula I was holding. "Stop stealing food," I said as I put my hands on my hips with the spatula still in hand.

"Jesus. You're eerily like my ma' right now." Jax said as he looked at me. It struck something in me and I burst out laughing. I couldn't help myself. I hadn't even thought about the possibility that I might even be a bit like Gemma. It wasn't too surprising though. Especially not since how much I'd been talking to her the past couple of years. Gemma on the other hand didn't think it was funny. She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the two of us. I kept snickering as I made my way over to Luann. I did not want to get yelled at. Sometimes it felt like Gemma could just as well be my mother. That was how she acted either way. It was quite nice, especially after I'd lost my own mother.

As the day went on people came and went. I didn't always pay attention to what was going on. I would overhear snippets of conversations, and every time I'd look over to the bouncing castle, there was a clown there. It made me shiver. After a while of just serving food I headed over to the were the kids were playing with water guns. It was fun to watch, and I got squirted once or twice with water. I didn't mind much.

While I was watching kids playing with the water guns I saw Jax coming out with Opie and one other guys from the gym, and the other guy along with Opie had bruises. I watched them for a few seconds before I went back to help Gemma at the booth. I knew she'd have my head if I didn't return soon. And pissing of Gemma was not something I wanted to do after only being back home for two days.

When I got back to the booth Bobby was talking. "Seen Jax?" he asked and I chimed in. "I saw him with Opie." However Gemma wasn't satisfied.

"Why?" she asked, demanding to know what was going on.

"Boss wants us." was the response she got from Bobby. The sergeant at arms was there too. I had no idea what his name was though. Gemma sighed and said "You got two more hours in that booth."

"Sorry mother." the sergeant at arms said and the two left. I wasn't surprised when Gemma said "Jesus Christ, Clay." She wasn't happy at all. I just kept quiet and helped out with serving food. That was when the police chief walked up. They were talking about something so mundane as how fried food would kill the chief. However I did pay more attention when they started talking about the ATF agent. When the chief of police left I walked up to Gemma.

"Why is ATF looking in to the club?" I asked and she just glared at me. That was when the guys were walking by and Gemma walked up to them. "Why do I get a feeling that I'm missing something?" I asked Gemma and she sighed.

"Later okay?" Gemma asked me and I nodded. It meant I was going to get information. I wasn't sure if I wanted to know everything though. I went back to serve the food, and as the day continued to pass by I found myself highly preoccupied by thoughts of Half Sack of all people. He seemed to be a sweet guy. I was brought out of my thoughts when the concert began. I grabbed my high heels and put them back on. Me and Gemma were watching the band play and after that we headed home to my place. Gemma following in her car.

When I opened the front door I was greeted by Gem who came up to me and barked. "Yes I'm home now," I said and squatted down and petted her. When I had petted Gem I took off my high heels and went in to the living room. Sitting down on the couch. Gemma sat down in the arm chair next to the couch while my lovely dog came and settled down right next to me on the couch.

"First off, don't let Clay find out that you know anything about the club." Gemma said and I thought she was actually going to tell me something about the club. "The ATF are looking in to the club because of gun running." Gemma said matter-of-factly. I was taken by surprise, and Gemma could see that.

"Is it true?" I asked and Gemma shook her head at first.

"The charges are true," she said, but she didn't give me any other information. I decided to leave it be. Pushing Gemma to tell me things could mean trouble. In more ways than one.

"Are you going to tell me exactly why you came home?" Gemma asked me out of the blue and I just glared at her. I knew I'd have to tell her sooner or later. I'd prefer it to be later, a lot later. Or rather not at all.

"Cassandra. I can't help you if you don't tell me." Gemma continued to speak. I just sighed as I leaned back against the couch.

"Don't Gemma." I warned her. I truly wasn't in the mood. But then again, I never thought I'd be in the mood to talk to anyone about a stalker that killed my dog and that it was the reason I ran.

"Why not?" Gemma asked and I just shot a dirty look her way.

"Why do you think? Would you like to talk about a stalker that killed your dog and made you so scared that you ran?" I asked Gemma loudly and she was dumbfounded of course. I had just blurted out the reason I came home as a question.

"Point taken. But sweet heart, you don't need to worry. The boys can keep you safe," she said and I just glared at her. I didn't need protection. I had my dog, and the gun. Which reminded me of grabbing my bag that I'd dropped on the floor by the door. I got up from the couch and grabbed my bag.

"Gemma go home. I'm fine," I said and waited for Gemma to leave. It didn't take too long. I closed the door after her and locked it. I waited until I heard her car leave before I did anything else. It was nice when she'd left. I went into the kitchen, still carrying my bag. And refilled the dog bowls with fresh water and food. After I'd done that I headed over to my bed room.

"Good night Gem," I said as I peeled off my clothes. I grabbed the t-shirt I'd slept in the previous night and put it on. I crawled into bed, and not before long I was joined by Gem. I thought I would doze off quickly seeing as it had been a long day. However I was wrong. As I was lying in bed I just couldn't fall asleep. It was as if something was keeping me awake. "What is wrong with me?" I asked myself and petted Gem who was lying right next to me.


	3. Secrets, Past or Present?

**A/N: Thank you for the kind reviews. They help fuel my writing. **

**Chapter 3: Secrets, Past or Present? is the full chapter title.**

**WARNING! This chapter contains SMUT about half way in. so if you don't like it, don't read it.**

**The story has a mature rating for a reason. I hope you enjoy the new chapter and leave reviews.**

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For once I'd actually gotten a good nights sleep. Nowadays the good nights sleep was few and far between. It wasn't much I could do about it though, nightmares haunted me. As I felt the wet tongue of my dog against my cheek I opened my eyes. Since I was lying on my side what I saw was Gem's face.

"Morning to you too," I said as I rolled over to my back. I pushed myself off of the bed and sat up. I rubbed my eyes before actually getting up from the bed. I walked over to the bedroom window and peaked out through the curtain. When I'd done so I went to search for my phone. I found it in my bag. I checked the time and it was still early. Since I didn't have a job yet, I planned on going to the garage to see what Gemma and the boys were up to. As I stood by the window I heard how my stomach rumbled, so I headed into the kitchen. I was still half asleep, the first thing I did was turn the coffeemaker on. While I waited for the coffee to be done I made toast that I ate while standing at the counter. When I'd eaten the toast I went over to the kitchen door. On the floor by the door I had Gem's bowls. The water bowl still had some water in it, but the food bowl was empty. So I filled both of the bowls up again. When I'd done so the coffee was done.

I poured myself a cup of coffee and went out into the living room. I put the cup down on the coffee table. I then proceeded to go into the bedroom and fetched my laptop. I was going to do some more research and see if I could find a piano. I still missed it. Playing the piano was something I loved and did often. So not having a piano bothered me.

I fired up the laptop and went onto search for pianos. It didn't take me too long. I found a used piano that would be perfect. Only trouble was how to get it to fit into my living room. I knew I could move the couch and armchair around. However I might have to get rid of the coffee tables. It didn't bother me too much. As I sat there with the laptop I took a sip of the coffee. I sent off an email to the owner of the piano, I was dead set on getting it. I had money stashed away, and if it wasn't enough, I knew I could get some money from Gemma.

I closed the laptop and watched tv for a bit. It was still too early to go to the garage. When I'd finished my coffee I headed into the bathroom. I was going to take a shower, I needed it.

When half an hour had passed I felt like I was done in the shower. So I got out with a towel around my hair, and another around me. I grabbed a t-shirt and pulled it over my head, which was slightly difficult with the towel around my hair, but I managed. With the t-shirt going down below my behind I didn't bother with panties, since I was just going to stand in the bathroom while drying my hair.

While I was fixing my hair I heard my phone go off. I just sighed, I didn't feel like answering it, so I just let it ring. When I was satisfied with how my hair looked I went on to get dressed. Today I went with a navy blue t-shirt that had the word son on it in bold letters. With it I wore a pair of jeans shorts and flip flops. Because the t-shirt was too big I used a rubber band to tie it up so it fit me better and didn't hung down too far. When I grabbed my phone I saw that it was my best friend who'd called. When I'd gotten the new phone number I'd emailed it to her.

I decided to send a text to her to explain why I didn't pick up. "Sorry I didn't answer the phone, Sam. Was busy. I'll call you tonight." I wrote and then sent of the text to Sam. Gem was following me around as I was getting the rest of my things. I was going to switch to a bigger bag. When I'd put my wallet, phone and keys in the bag along with a few other things I grabbed Gem's leash.

"Come here girl," I said and she sat down right next to me, and I attached the leash to her collar. When I'd attached the leash to the collar I opened the front door and headed out through it. Last night I'd parked my truck in the driveway. It reminded me that I needed to get the garage door fixed. With the leash in hand I walked over to the passenger door of the car an opened it.

"In you go," I said to Gem and she jumped up and settled down on the seat. I put my bag on the floor in front of the seat. When I'd closed the door I went around the front of the truck and climbed into it as well.

I drove to the garage which didn't take long seeing as Charming wasn't the biggest town around. When I arrived at the garage most of the guys were already there, or at least their bikes. I parked my truck and got out of it. I went over to the passenger side and grabbed Gem's leash and my bag. With leash in hand I headed over to the office, where I knew Gemma would be. When I got up to the office Gemma was talking to Half Sack.

"Uhm, do you have the number for the septic guy?" Half Sack asked Gemma and I just looked at him as I leaned against the wall and watched the two talk.

"Piney filled the tanks already?!" Gemma asked surprised. I was disgusted by the conversation and just went in to the office and sat down on the couch. Sadly I could still hear the conversation. It wasn't particularly interesting.

"Yea… Someone's been flushing nice panties." I heard Half Sack saying and I just burst out laughing when I heard it. It was disgusting.

"I don't even know what to say to that." Gemma said and turned around and came in to find the number for the septic guy. Half Sack poked his head in through the door and I flashed him a smile, which made him grin like a fool. It made me smile brighter, up until the second I felt a wet tongue on my cheek. Gem had gotten up on the couch and she was licking my face. I could hear how both Gemma and Half Sack were laughing, and after a while I just joined in, because it was funny, and probably looked ridiculous as well.

Gemma handed Half Sack a piece of paper and instead of going back to the club house as I expected him to do, I saw him do a double take when the Mohawk guy got out of the truck with oil drums along with a pretty brunette. I'd been standing on my knees on the couch looking out through the window to see what the noise was. It had been the truck. Gemma stood in the door way and watched what was happening. I watched as my dad said something to the girl and then Jax hit mr. Mohawk guy over the head. Half Sack had been standing still watching it all happen, just as me and Gemma had. He came walking back in to the office. Gemma closed the door behind him. I did nothing, I just stayed seated.

Half Sack went over to the phone and picked it up and started dialing. However he didn't get far because Gemma grabbed the phone from his hand and put it back down, and in the process hung it up. She didn't look too happy. I had no idea what was going on, so I just sat there quietly.

"Who's the girl?" she asked and I looked from Gemma to Half Sack. Gemma looked like she was about to hit Half Sack, which accounted to why he looked scared shitless. It was something I was curious to find out too.

"Um… I- I don't know," Half Sack mumbled out, I was fairly certain that it was a lie because he looked uncomfortable and like he was about to shit himself.

"Uhu, I saw you heart skip a beat from over here, dude." I said and Half Sack looked over at me, as did Gemma. She cocked an eyebrow at me. I had a feeling that Gemma had been about to say that, but if she had or not, I would never know because she started to talk again.

"Who is she Half Sack?" she pressed him about it. She really wanted to know and I was getting slightly uneasy.

"Uhm, just a tribe hang around," he answered with and I scrutinized him but didn't say anything else at the time because I could tell Gemma was about to say something.

"Clay hit that tart, didn't he?" Gemma asked as she looked dead serious. I was surprised by Gemma's question but I kept my facial expression as neutral as possible. It wasn't going all too well. I couldn't believe that my dad would be a cheater.

"I don't really know… who Clay's hitting… except for you. I'm sure he's hitting… you. Since you're his wife an' all." Half Sack said stuttering. It was sort of cute that he was stuttering, but I knew he was doing it because he was nervous and uncomfortable. Gemma brushed a strand of hair out of her face and turned around and came over to the door and sat down on the chair by it.

"Get out!" Gemma said creepily calm. I looked at her and then I looked over at Half Sack who just dragged his hand through his hair and then went out through the door. He closed the door after him as well. That was when Gemma started to break down and cry. I had no idea what to say, or what to do. So I just sat there.

"It's going to be okay Gemma," I said and she just looked up at me through the tears that were streaming down her beautiful face. She was trying to control her crying, she was trying to stop it.

"I know that," Gemma said as she grabbed her bag. She fished up tissues and patted her cheeks dry.

"Wait, what?" I asked highly confused. How could she already know that. Then I realized that this was probably one of those club things that I didn't know about yet.

"Club rules, what happens on a run stays on a run. No matter what it is. The rules were broken." Gemma said and I just stared at her. I had no idea what to say at that. It was as if the accepted cheating.

"You have a lot to learn sweet heart. But don't worry. I'll teach you." Gemma said and I still just sat there staring at her. I had no idea of what I was going to say to her. I didn't want to ask her what it was she was going to teach me, because I honestly didn't want to know. I had no plans of becoming anyone's old lady.

"Sweet heart, don't worry. I know what I am doing." Gemma said and I kept looking at her.

"Somehow I doubt that." I mumbled and of course Gemma heard it because she hit me on the arm. She could reach me from where she was sitting on the chair seeing as I was sitting on the couch. My German Sheppard Gem was still in the office, lying right next to me on the couch. She seemed to be sleeping.

"Watch your tongue girl." Gemma said as she got up from the chair. She wasn't happy with my comment, and I had a feeling that she was going to let me know it more than once today. I sighed as I too got up. Gem however stayed on the couch, but she was now standing on it and I had no idea how she managed to do that with just three legs.

"Well it seems I've been talking too much to you," I said and I knew that'd earn me either a slap or some foul words, however when neither happened I just looked at Gemma whom was grinning like a fool.

"Jesus Christ. You really are going to be a hand full aren't you?" Gemma asked me and I just shrugged my shoulders. "Well, I know where we can go, but leave the dog here." Gemma said and I just nodded. I had a bowl with me, and I put it down on the floor and filled it with water from a bottle.

"Half Sack can watch her," I said and Gemma nodded in agreement. I wondered what she had planned, but didn't ask about it.

"Hey, Half Sack! Gemma told me to tell you that you are going to baby-sit my dog!" I shouted across the lot and Half Sack looked up and came spurting over. "She's in the office." I said and then got in to the passenger seat of Gemma's car. She drove off the lot and headed for the highway.

"You should tell Clay, baby. He is your father and deserves to know the truth." Gemma said to me as she was driving the car. I just heaved a sigh. She was still going to bug me about talking to my dad about what had happened.

"I don't want to, and I'm not going to." I said as I turned my head and looked out the window. I could feel the smell of the cigarette smoke. I wasn't surprised that she smoked. I didn't say anything about it. It was her choice.

"Hun, you were raped and then gave up a child for adoption. Don't you think your father deserves to know that he has a grandchild?" Gemma asked me and I could feel the guilt well up in me. Not only for giving the child up, but for not telling my dad about it. I tried to avoid to think about it too often, because it could bring me to a very dark place.

"Yes… But I can't. I don't want him to know… I'm broken. It's too much. Besides. If he ever found out. You know that it'd start a man hunt, for a man I don't remember and don't want to remember." I said still looking out the window.

"Cassandra, I know you're lying." was what I got for a response from Gemma. It was true, I was lying. Not about the part about not wanting to remember, but about the part that I didn't remember. I remembered plenty of what had happened that night. I just didn't want to talk about it. I shuddered slightly as the memories battled their way to the forefront of my mind. I clamped down hard on those thoughts. Not wanting them in my head.

"That might be so, but I'm not going to talk about it. Besides it's not like it's the same guy that made me leave Boston." I said and then I blurted out the last part. I hadn't meant to say it, yet I did. I hadn't told her yet. Not about the new stalker I had. The one I'd hopefully gotten away from.

"What are you talking about Cass?" Gemma asked me and I glanced over at Gemma who was looking at me before turning her attention back to the road.

"That's right. I haven't told you…" I trailed off as I kicked my shoes off. I pulled my feet up on to the seat, which wasn't too tricky even though I was wearing my seatbelt. I put my head on my knees and tilted it so I could see Gemma.

"Told me what?" Gemma kept asking, she was obviously determined to get it out of me.

"I didn't tell you the exact reason for leaving Boston. Well in Boston I worked as a teacher. Which you already know. Well one of the substitute teachers, a male one. He started following me around. Going through my trash.." Gemma held her hand up, I had a feeling that she wanted to say something, and I was right.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked and I just rolled my eyes.

"Are you going to let me finish telling you or not?" I asked and Gemma nodded, keeping her eyes on the road.

"Go ahead sweet heart," Gemma said and I just nodded before I continued.

"Well he kept stalking me, and it escalated. He wouldn't leave me alone. I got a restraining order, it didn't help. He kept breaking it. Because of that I started carrying pepper spray with me. And I'm glad I did. It stopped him from raping me. I didn't want to go through that again. However, that wasn't the end of it." I had to pause, because I could feel the tears stinging my eyes. Remembering what that awful man had done was not easy.

"Jesus Christ," Gemma said when she realized that I was taking a pause to gather myself back up.

"It's fine. He didn't succeed. But he is the reason I had that gun registered to me, along with a license to use it. He was imprisoned for a few months for the attempted rape, and when he got out he was set on doing it again. I know this because only hours after he got out he tried again, but thankfully this time I had something better. My gun. He was imprisoned again. Seeing as I pressed charges, but he still only got a few months. Remember when I called you and told you I was coming home?" I asked Gemma and I looked at her.

"Yes. Six in the morning." Gemma answered and I laughed coldly. The tears were still streaming down my face. I knew I'd have to wash my face with cold water after this, because my eyes would go all puffy from crying.

"Well the day before I called you he showed up at my house. He killed my dog. It was the last thing. I called the cops and they got him and imprisoned him again. I don't know when he'll be out this time. I just had to leave. And I thought coming here was my best bet. The middle of nowhere…" I said and then trailed off. I didn't know what else to say.

"With big hairy bikers that can protect you." Gemma finished and I looked over at her and laughed a dry laugh. Gemma was now pulling in to a parking lot. I looked around and wondered where we were.

"I need to talk to Luann. This is her studio." Gemma told me as she got out of the car. I nodded and got out of the car as well. I wondered what kind of studio we were at. I knew I'd find out in a few seconds.

"Cassandra, if you are coming inside with me, try and keep your opinion to yourself. A'right?" Gemma said and I just nodded. I had a feeling that I wouldn't like what I was about to see.

I was right. The scene that greeted me was that of a porn film shoot. I closed my eyes for a few seconds and took a breath and huffed it out. I wasn't too sure if I was going to be able to sit through it, but I was going to try because Gemma wanted me to come. Otherwise she wouldn't have driven me here.

I sat down on the chair and looked down at my hands in my lap. That was when I heard the whistle that indicated I had a new text. I fished the phone up, and was glad that I had something else to focus on. The text was from my best friend Samantha. "Still busy?" the text read and I had to bite my lip not to burst out laughing. I had had a feeling that she would be texting me after this morning. She knew I had a habit of forgetting to call her back.

"Nah, just watching a porno being made." I wrote and then sent it off. Gemma looked over at me and I just smiled. Gemma rolled her eyes and turned back to Luann. I was sitting comfortably, with my phone in hand. Staring down at it. Still not wanting to see what they were doing.

"Where the heck are you?" Sam replied with, and I had to once again bite my lip to not laugh. Sam had a tendency to make me laugh, even though it was just a text.

"At a porno shoot." I texted back, it was the truth, even though I knew that it wasn't what Sam wanted to know. She wanted to know where in the world I was.

"Let me come, please." was the pleading reply I got from Samantha and it got an automated response. A response we always said to each other when something sounded like it could be said in a sexual situation.

"That's what she said." I replied with, and then looked up to see the guy who was on the desk with a girl over him, and another guy standing holding something that looked like a paddle. I cringed. I then turned my focus over to Gemma's conversation with Luann, because I did not watch this porno being made.

When my phone whistled again I checked it. Another text, I looked at it, and it said; "Haha, very funny. But seriously, under what rock are you hiding?" I rolled my eyes and wrote my reply. "I'm not hiding under a rock. I'm home." I wasn't going to elaborate on where I was over the phone, not right now at least. My phone whistled again, and I looked at the text from Sam. "And where is home this time?" she had asked. I didn't answer, I just closed the phone and stuck it in my bag again. I shifted my attention back over to the conversation going on between Gemma and Luann.

"Can you believe the balls on that little whore. Showing up at the goddamn clubhouse." Gemma said seething. She was not upset any more, well she was upset but more angry than anything right now. It didn't surprise me much. I could understand why. I would've kicked the guys ass if he'd cheated on me.

"Clay couldn't have known." Luann said, and I agreed with her. But I didn't say so. I knew Gemma would just chew my head off about it later if I did.

"The rules got broken. What happens on a run stays on a run. It does not show up and slap me in the goddamn face. It does not happen to me." Gemma seethed, and while she was doing that she started rubbing her neck, as if she was sweating. She then went on feeling her forehead. I quirked an eyebrow, and that was when Gemma spoke again. "She's so young." Gemma was right. The brunette looked to be around my age.

"And dumb. And before she knows it, she's gonna be old and wise like us." Came the comforting words from Luann. She knew exactly how to talk to Gemma. It was interesting to watch. Their relationship reminded me of mine with Sam.

"How am I supposed to handle this? I just wanna rip his goddamn heart out." Gemma said and she then looked over at me, and I had a problem with keeping a straight face. I was shocked that Gemma said it. But then again, he had cheated on her. I didn't know what to say, then Luann surprised us both.

"Estretol. Solution 15. It's magic, I'll get my guy to write you a prescription." was what she said and I happened to know what that was. It was for menopause. I just burst out laughing. Gemma looked offended and Luann looked confused. I clamped my hands over my mouth to help to stop myself from laughing. And it helped.

"Sorry," I said meekly. Gemma just shook her head. She then turned to Luann and said; "I didn't come here for a diagnosis."

"Sure you did. You're lucky baby. My walls went dry at 45." Luann said as she used a tissue to dab Gemma's face. It was touching to see, even though the turn the conversation had taken was grossing me out.

"I'm only 51. I'm not ready for this." Gemma said while looking pitiful. I had no idea she could pull that off. Luann was still fussing over her, and Gemma was getting frustrated by it, so she brushed Luann's hand away and said "Stop," with an exasperated sigh and at the same time she got up from the chair. She motioned for me to follow. I got up from the chair of course, I had gotten a ride from Gemma so I had no choice unless I wanted to be stuck here.

"Bye Luann," I said and she waved to me as I followed Gemma out. We both got in the car almost at the same time. Gemma didn't say anything at all. She just started the car and drove back to Charming. I wondered if she was going to go to the pharmacy or not, but I didn't ask. I was still processing the information from the earlier conversation. While driving Gemma took the top down on the car. The whole ride back to Charming was silent. Not before long Gemma parked the car. She got out of it and headed in to the pharmacy. I stayed put in the car still barefoot. I hadn't bothered putting my shoes back on. It took Gemma about ten minutes to come back out.

When she did she had her sunglasses on. She dropped the medicine she'd gotten in the backseat of the car. That when I heard her mumble; "Skinny ass bitch." I turned around and saw the girl from this morning.

"Gemma don't," I warned her. I had no idea what she was going to do, but I felt I had to warn her not to do it. However she obviously didn't pay attention to me, because the next second, the kid who'd skated by and stumbled off his skateboard, she grabbed his skateboard. She held it in both hands and smashed it over the girls face.

"GEMMA!" I shouted as I turned around in the seat and stared at her. She had just used a skateboard and smashed the girl's face in. The girl was moaning and in pain. I could hear her say "ow" now and again.

"Oh my god, my nose." she said with her hand over it. I didn't get out of the car, I thought she deserved it, but I couldn't exactly say so. I didn't want to get myself in to trouble. It was enough that Gemma would be. People now started to gather around her and she was crying. I slipped my shoes back on and got out of the car and walked up to Gemma. "You okay?" I asked but she didn't answer. It was as if she was in a daze. That was when I heard the girl talk again.

"Who are you? Why did you do that to me?" she asked, and Gemma just walked over to the front of the car and sat down on the pavement. I looked at Gemma and then over at the girl.

"She's Gemma Teller-Morrow, and she probably hit you with the skateboard because you fucked her husband and then came here." I said with my arms crossed over my chest. The brunette just stared at me. I just told the truth. I wasn't surprised when I heard the sirens. Obviously someone had called the police, and considering what Gemma had done, I knew she'd end up in jail.

When the police came they obviously read Gemma her rights and then put her in the police car. "I'll take your car back to the lot," I said to Gemma who just nodded. I didn't follow her to the police station, I was more interested to get my dog back, and I had also promised Gemma to get her car back to the garage. I didn't stay for long. I got in to the driver's seat of the car just as the ambulance pulled up. I drove off and headed to the garage. Well at the garage I was met by the septic guy and they were emptying the garage's septic tank.

I got out of the car and whistled. The door to the office was open and I saw how Gem came sprinting out. I squatted down and she came to a halt in front of me and licked my face. "I missed you too." I said smiling as I gave her a hug.

"You're not supposed to be here." I heard someone say. I turned around and saw Jax. "Yea well. Gemma got arrested and I wanted my dog back." I said and he stared at me. He looked dumbfounded.

"Jesus Christ. Like I don't have enough to worry about." He said and turned around and headed back in to the garage. I rolled my eyes and headed over in to the office. I was going to fetch the bowl I'd put there for Gem. But before I could reach the office Half Sack came up to me.

"Hey," he said and I just smiled at him at first.

"Hey yourself." I said and turned around to head over to the picnic table. It'd be easier to have a conversation while sitting rather than standing. Half Sack followed me. I sat down on the table, and Half Sack sat down next to me.

"Why do you keep hanging around here?" he asked me and I just shrugged at first. I knew exactly why I was around, but I wasn't too sure if I wanted anyone to know the full truth just yet.

"Well I like bikers," I said flirtatiously and flashed him a pretty smile.

"Oh really? Well you're in luck, there are some really amazing ones here." Half Sack said and I laughed lightly. I had my back to the garage and the septic truck, and I was facing Half Sack who had his back to the club house. While we were talking and flirting I saw the septic truck leave.

"I know, I'm talking to one of them," I said flashing another grin, this time Half Sack had the decency to actually blush. I thought it was cute, and it also made me smile even more.

"Well you aren't too bad yourself." Half Sack said, and I had a feeling that it was supposed to be a compliment but it was half assed. Which I planned on pointing out.

"If that was supposed to be a compliment, than you failed my friend." I said but before Half Sack could say anything back I saw a truck of agents driving on to the lot.

The ATF agents got out of their car and said "Hands where I can see them." I just sat there baffled. Me and Half Sack were sitting on one of the picnic tables while the rest of the guys were sitting at another one. All of us, me included were forced to lay down on the ground with our hands behind our backs. When this happened Gem crawled out from under the picnic table where she'd been sleeping, and she came up and lay down right next to me. She licked my face and I just lay there. I wondered how long this would take. I wasn't in the mood to be stuck here.

I had no idea of knowing what the cops were up to, but they were obviously going through the club house. As we were laying there, all lined up on the ground, I was next to Half Sack, whom was next the mr. Mohawk, whom was next to Jax, whom was next to Bobby Elvis, whom was lying next to a guy I hadn't seen earlier. All of the guys started to laughing and then the guy with his ridiculous Mohawk said; "You smell nice," and the guys just started to laugh even more. When he had talked the ATF agent had walked past and she looked at the boys. I had no idea why they were laughing, and I didn't join in. I just looked at Gem who had her nose right next to my face.

We were stuck there for quite a while, however nothing was found except oil drums. They let us go. I just got up and got in to my car along with my dog and drove home.

When I got home, I decided I needed a shower. Especially after I'd been lying on the ground. So I peeled off my clothes and headed in to the shower. While I was washing my hair I heard my stomach rumble. That was when I realized I hadn't eaten all day. I sighed. When I was done in the shower I just put on a pair of panties and a t-shirt. I couldn't be bothered to put anything else on.

I went out into the kitchen when I heard my phone ring. I went over and checked who it was. It was Sam.

"Hi girly." I answered and I heard her laughter on the other end.

"Now seriously Cass. Were you at a porno shoot?" Samantha asked me and I laughed as well.

"Yes," I then answered her and I could almost hear how Sam's jaw dropped. "Are you still there?" I asked and listened to see if there was going to be an answer.

"Yea, it's just. You were at a porno shoot… Now you have to tell me where the hell you are." Sam said and I just laughed. I knew she'd demand to know where I was. I didn't mind though.

"I'm in Charming, California. The town where I was born." I said as I opened the freezer to see if I had any pizza in it. I did. I smiled and grabbed it. It was those pizzas you could cook quickly in the microwave.

"Charming? That sounds like the middle of nowhere." Sam said and I nodded, before I realized that she couldn't see me nodding.

"Yea, it is basically in the middle of nowhere. But so far I like it here. 'Sides, I have family here. Family I want to get to know." I said and heard a slight chuckle from Sam. I'd gotten to know her while I lived in New York, and she'd quickly become my best friend. She still lived there, and I hadn't seen her for several years now.

"Well, if you like it, why leave. But what I don't get is why you disappeared of the face of the earth for a while." Sam said, and I knew exactly what she meant, and which time period.

"Hey, I had to. 'Sides you got my new number." I said as the ding of the microwave let me know the pizza was done. I grabbed the plate it was on and went over to the kitchen table. I took the phone from my ear and put it on speaker so I could eat while talking to Sam.

"True, and please tell me you aren't eating while talking to me. It's disgusting Cassie." Sam said and I just laughed. She knew me too well.

"No it's not disgusting. It's only disgusting when you can see it." I said and stuck my tongue out at my phone.

"No, it's always disgusting to talk with food in your mouth." Sam retorted and I just laughed at that.

"Hun, I don't talk with my mouth full. Not any more." I said, because I knew exactly what incident Sam was talking about. When we were kids and it was my birthday I'd had a party and during that party I'd gotten cake. While I was eating the cake I'd been talking too, about all my presents and the cake was going all over the place. That was the incident that Sam was most likely referring to, seeing as she was there.

"Okay then. Well Cassie I've gotta go. Talk to you later," Sam said and I nodded and then replied; "Yea, laters." and I hung up. The conversation had been one of our shorter ones. At times we could talk for hours.

When I was done eating I put the plate in the dishwasher. I watched as Gem ate her food, then I settled down on the couch with my laptop for a bit. I'd gotten a reply from the piano owner. I could pick it up tomorrow or the day after. I smiled. It would be wonderful to have a piano again.

Before I crawled in to bed I dialed a familiar number. I dialed the garage. Half Sack picked up.

"Hey, we never got to finish our conversation earlier." I said smiling to myself as I sat on the edge of my bed.

"I know, I can't talk right now." he said and I pouted and then put on a sneaky smirk. Sure I didn't exactly know Half Sack just yet, but I liked him. And I wanted to get to know him.

"Well, you could always come over here, so we can finish that conversation," I said smiling mischievously. I had a feeling that it would be fun if he did come over. I wanted to talk more to him, and if it lead to something more, I wouldn't mind.

"What are you suggesting?" Half Sack asked me and I laughed before answering.

"Just that we continue our conversation from earlier today. You're welcome to come over." I said and hung up the phone. It didn't take long before I heard a knock on the door. I walked over to it, with brush in hand, because I'd been brushing my hair, and opened the door.

"Come on in." I said to Half Sack, and he entered. I walked back in to the living room and settled down on the couch. Gem was lying on the dog bed that I'd moved in to the living room.

"Nice place," Half Sack said as I heard how he closed and locked the door after himself. He entered the living room a few seconds later.

"Thanks," I said as I put the hairbrush down. He sat down on the couch right next to me. I knew that I was still only wearing panties and a t-shirt. I didn't care much.

"So, why did you invite me here?" He asked and I just smiled.

"Well, I thought it'd be nice to get to know you. You seem like a good enough guy, and besides, you're hot." I said as I grabbed a rubber band that was sitting on the hairbrush handle. I wrapped it around my hair and created a ponytail. It was fun to see how Half Sack reacted when I called him hot. He squirmed slightly and then just broke out in a huge grin.

"You're hot too, gorgeous." he said as a response and I couldn't help but to smile.

"So, they call you Half Sack, for obvious reasons. But what's your name?" I asked, because I wanted to know, it was a bit strange calling someone Half Sack. Or at least I thought so. I had a feeling that I could get used to it though.

"It's Kip." he answered and I couldn't help but to laugh. I thought it was a silly name for a grown man, but then again, it wasn't my place to say so.

"Why are you laughing?" he asked me, and it just had me laughing even more.

"Will you stop laughing?" Half Sack asked me, and I tried my hardest to stop. It took a while but I managed.

"Sorry. It's just. Really your name is Kip?" I asked and he just nodded. I had to bite my lip so I wouldn't burst out laughing again.

"Yes it really is Kip. Something wrong with that?" he asked and I shook my head as an answer. Half Sack inched closer to me on the couch, I easily noticed it. But I didn't mind at all.

"You know, we could have some fun instead of just sitting here," I said and smile mischievously. Half Sack stared at me.

"And what would that be?" he asked me, and my smile widened. I leaned over and planted a kiss right on his lips. I hadn't had sex in a long while, and hanging around the bikers, had made me a lot hornier than I'd expected. He responded by caressing my cheek with his left hand. We kept kissing, and after a little while he pulled me closer to him, so I ended up in his lap. As we kept kissing, I felt how his tongue was tracing my lips, so I parted them. As our tongues battled for dominance over the other, Half Sack was pushing against me, trying to get me to lay down on the couch. I broke the kiss to speak.

"Bedroom, first door on the right." I said slightly out of breath. And just as I'd stopped talking Half Sack's mouth found mine again. As we went back to making out, he picked me up easily. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and my legs around his waist while he had his arms around my waist. He walked over to the door the led to the master bedroom. I was thankful I'd left the door open.

Half Sack opened the door more with his foot and then walked over to my bed. He put me down on it and leaned over me. However he climbed on to the bed and lifted me further on to it a few seconds later. When he did so I started pulling at his t-shirt. The one he wore under his cut. He moved back and got off the bed and hung the cut on a chair I had standing in the bedroom and then pulled his t-shirt off while I watched.

"You are hot," I said again as I watched the muscles of his back. When he turned around and I got a look of his abs I just grinned big.

"So are you," I got for a response as he unbuckled and unbuttoned his jeans. And as he came back to the bed he made them slide down his hips.

"Your turn," he said as he pushed them down to his ankles and stepped out of them and came back to the bed. He was standing on his knees in the bed, in just his boxers, looking down at me. He then leaned down and kissed me again. As he did so he let his hands roam my stomach under the t-shirt. As his hands traveled upwards he made the t-shirt slide up, revealing more of my skin to him. He stopped kissing me for just a second. He started to kiss my jaw, and trailed kisses along my jaw line, over to my ear and then down my neck. When he'd reached my neck with kisses, his hands reached my breasts. I could feel my breath going more and more rapid.

Half Sack took a break from kissing and exploring me, and pulled the t-shirt over my head. Now both of us were in just our underwear. He wore boxers, I a pair of panties. He went back to trailing kisses from my neck down to my breasts. All the while my hands were grabbing handfuls of the cover and sheets, needing something to hold on to.

Now Half Sack was moving his way back up trailing kisses back up to my neck, along my jaw line and then kissed me full on. I let my hands travel up over his back this time. I could feel his hands trailing downwards, just as mine did. And not before long, he was tugging at my panties, and I let him pull them off. When he'd done so, he pulled his boxers off as well. But before coming back and kissing me again, he fished something up from his jeans. I knew exactly what it was. A condom. I just smiled as I watched him put it on. He then moved over me and hovered there for a bit, and I helped him get it right. Since I had been so horny before we started it didn't take me long to come at all. He moved back and forth, and I matched his rhythm quickly.

"Oh God," I moaned as I came, and just a few seconds later Half Sack came as well. He then collapsed on me. But only for a few seconds though.

When he'd moved off me, and I had more or less gotten over my orgasm, I got up from the bed, and headed for the bathroom. I had to pee.

"You coming back to bed?" I heard and I just laughed as I flushed the toilet. I washed my hands and then went back to the bed. Half Sack had crawled in under the cover, and I just smiled as I joined him. It didn't take long before I fell asleep.

"Phone's ringing," was the words I woke up to. I opened my eyes slowly, letting them get used to the light. The voice had come from Half Sack, whom was still in my bed, with his arms around me. I thought about last night and blushed slightly. I normally didn't do one night stands with guys I barley knew.

"Where is it?" I asked as I realized that my phone wasn't in the bedroom. I felt how Half Sack tried to shrug while laying in bed. The phone stopped ringing. As I was laying in bed I realized that I hadn't had any nightmares. I just smiled as I stayed there. However it didn't last for long as another phone went off. And it wasn't mine. It was Half Sack's. He untangled himself from me and searched for it. When he did that, I grabbed my t-shirt that was lying close by the bed and pulled it over my head before I headed in to the bathroom. I was peeing, then I flushed and washed my hands, taking unnecessarily long time to do it. I didn't want to hear what or whom Half Sack was talking to.

"I gotta go," Half Sack said as he poked his head in to the bathroom. I nodded as I watched how he buckled his pants.

"I'll see you around, and close the door on your way out." I said as I wiped my hands on the towel. Half Sack nodded. I waited until I heard the door close to leave my bedroom. I stood by the front door and waited until I heard the bike disappear before I locked the door.

"Hi Gem," I said as I saw the dog coming in to the living room. She barked a greeting. I headed back in to the bedroom. I need to shower. Especially after what I did last night. However before I took a shower, I cleaned up the room and changed the sheets on the bed. I also opened my bedroom window.

Then I took a shower. When I was sure I was clean I got out, and brushed my hair. I let it hung loosely. I grabbed a dress I liked, and put it on. I then went to search for my phone. When I found it, I saw that Sam had tried to reach me. I just rolled my eyes. I didn't get it, why she still kept calling me at the crack of dawn. Well it wasn't exactly the crack of dawn, but it feel like it. I went to the kitchen and made coffee, and breakfast. When I'd eaten and drunk coffee I went and searched for my bag. I was going to get my piano today. I had the address written down, and headed there. It didn't take me long. I had the cash in my bag. I left Gem at home, because I felt she'd just be in the way today.

"Hi, I emailed you about the piano." I said and the woman who had opened the door nodded. I handed her the envelope with the money in it. She opened it and counted them. I didn't blame her.

"My husband and his brother will help you get it on to your truck." she said, and two men came out carrying the piano. It wasn't that big, it was just perfect.

"Thank you," I said after they'd put it on the bed of my truck. I was thankful for that old truck. It cam in handy quite often. I drove back home, and when I got there I realized I wouldn't be able to get the piano in to the house on my own. I fished out my phone and dialed my dad's phone number.

"This is Clay," was the answer I got. I then realized that he didn't have my number.

"Dad, it's me, Cassie." I said and all I heard was a weird noise and then he cleared his throat.

"Is there anything you need?" he asked and I sat down in the truck again.

"I need help. I have this piano that I need to get down from my truck and into my house." I said as I looked over at it. It was a beautiful brown piano.

"I'll be over in a bit," he said and hung up. I didn't even get the chance to thank him. But then again, seeing as he was on his way over here, I could just thank him when he showed up.

Twenty minutes later I heard noise that confirmed bikes were on their way here. I wondered if dad had brought anyone with him. Considering his hands, I had a feeling that he would've brought someone with him. I was right. Three bikes. Two others beside Clay.

"This is Chibs, and Half Sack you've met." he said and I nodded. Chibs just waved at me.

"If you could get the piano down from the truck and just into the living room I'll be able to do the rest myself." I said to instruct them, and they just nodded. I got out of the truck and closed the door and headed over to the front door and unlocked it. I then got out of the way. Clay entered the house and sat down on the couch. I wondered idly what he'd said to the boys to get them to help him.

It took the boys ten minutes to get the piano in to my living room, when they'd done so they both went back outside. Clay got up from the couch.

"Can I talk to you?" I asked and he looked over at me.

"Sure. Boys, I'll meet you back at the garage." Clay said and I saw Half Sack close the front door.

"What do you want?" he asked and I just knotted my hands together and sat down on the couch. Clay joined me.

"Has Gemma told you anything about why I'm back?" I asked him and he just shook his head. It meant that Gemma had kept her promise.

"Just promise me, that you won't get mad first, and don't interrupt me." I pleaded. I didn't want him to get mad. I hated it when he got mad, especially at something that was as old as what I was about to tell him.

"I promise." He said, however I doubted him. But it didn't matter, Gemma was right, he deserved to know.

"Five years ago, I was raped. It resulted in a pregnancy. You're a grandfather." I said meekly, not daring to look at him. I just looked down at my hands, still knotted together, laying in my lap.

"If I'm a grandfather, then where is the child?" he asked me, and I could hear nothing but surprise in his voice. I looked up at him.

"I couldn't keep him. I wasn't ready to take care of a child. So I gave him up for adoption." I said and I could see how the surprise spread to his facial expression. "But that wasn't why I came back here." I continued before he could say anything else.

"I was a teacher in Boston, and one of the male substitute teachers started to stalk me. It escalated. He tried to rape me, twice. And it was not the same guy who knocked me up." I trailed off. I hated talking about this, and I could feel how the tears started to stream down my face. That was when I felt a hand on my cheek. Brushing away the tears.

"It's okay. You're safe here and now, it's what's important. We'll protect you." Clay said as he pulled me into a hug. This was when I started to sob. I didn't know what to say. It just felt nice to be held by my dad, and to know that I was finally safe. It really felt like I could believe it. I didn't know what to say to it, so I just sat there, sobbing.

"Dry those tears my sweet girl. And maybe play the piano for me?" Clay said and I looked up at him. I managed to smile. Clay handed me a handkerchief and I dried my cheeks. I got up from the couch and walked over to the piano.

"If it's tuned," I said, and felt how the hiccups were starting up and it was all because I'd been crying. I stood by the piano and hit the keys in order and listened to it. It was out of tune. I shuddered at the sound it was making.

"Not gonna happen. I need to tune it first," I said between hiccups. I heard my phone ring and sighed. I had dropped the bag on the coffee table. I dug the phone up and saw that it was Gemma.

"Hi… mom," I said smirking slightly. She was after all my step mom. We had never talked about what I should call her, so normally I just called her Gemma. But now that dad was here I just felt like calling her mom.

"Gemma?" he asked me and I nodded to him.

"Did you just call me mom?" she asked and I just laughed.

"I couldn't help myself. Besides dad's here." I said and I heard a snort coming from Gemma. I wondered what that was about.

"Explain to me why Half Sack smells like you and is grinning like a fool." Gemma said and I felt how I was blushing.

"I have to get going," Clay said and I nodded and waved at him as he left.

"Gemma, how the heck did you know?" I asked as I went back to the couch and sat down on it. I had no idea how she could've figured that one out.

"I ran in to him this morning, and his t-shirt was inside out, and he smelled a lot like you. I just put two and two together." Gemma answered and I just turned even redder.

"Please don't tell dad, or anyone for that matter," I pleaded with her. I had a feeling this meant that I was going to have to do everything she told me for quite a while.

"Get your butt over here and we can talk about it." Gemma answered and I sighed as she hung up the phone. I did not like this at all. Gemma could now easily blackmail me. I wish I hadn't confirmed her suspicion. Alas I had.

"Gem here girl," I said and Gem came up to me. I had the leash hanging on a hook next to the door. I grabbed it and attached it to her collar.

"We're going to the garage." I said as I hung my bag over my shoulder. I still had my phone in hand, so I put it in my bag. I locked the door and let Gem climb into the truck before I went over to the garage.

I parked my truck and got out of it. I let Gem out of it as well. I grabbed her leash and headed over to the office. The door was open so I walked straight in. Gemma was on the phone, so I got in, closed the door behind me and sat down on the couch with Gem sitting down on the floor.

"What do I have to do to convince you to not tell anyone about me and Half Sack?" I asked and looked at Gemma as she put the phone down.

"Depends on the day. Just do what I say, and work for me and I won't tell anyone." Gemma said and I sighed. Why wasn't I surprised? Because I knew her. I had a feeling this might entail spying. Something I wasn't too fond of.

"Oh, just so you know, that brunette, her name is Cherry. And she is after Half Sack." Gemma said out of the blue. At least it felt out of the blue to me.

"Well, then she has some healthy competition." I said and smirked. I had no problem dealing with the skinny brunette. After all, I'd already fucked Half Sack, and I had a feeling that he'd enjoyed it just as much as I had. Sex was a great stress relief.


End file.
